


Episode 2-01 - "A Dark Reflection"

by stgjr



Series: Undiscovered Frontier Season 2 - "Whispers of Destiny" [1]
Category: Battlestar Galactica (2003), Original Work
Genre: Crossover, Gen, Multiple Crossovers, Multiverse, Space Opera
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-22
Updated: 2017-05-24
Packaged: 2018-11-03 12:35:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 26,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10967346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stgjr/pseuds/stgjr
Summary: The Aurora crew return to the 1850s-era Earth they once interfered with and encounter a deadly new foe; Zack and his crew prepare to depart from the Refugee Fleet as the election between Roslin and Baltar comes to its final, surprising conclusion.





	1. Chapter 1

**Teaser**  
  
  
The _Starship Aurora_ continued her slow course through space. She was designed with a sleek appearance formed around two hulls that blended together. From her narrower bow to the widest point of her beam was about a third of the ship's length; at that point the hulls met seamlessly. The forward "primary" hull had at its rear a large shuttle bay and the dock for an attack ship-sized vessel, while below the drive hull dipped below the bottom of the primary hull to reveal the ship's navigational deflector and, above it, torpedo launchers. Beyond the drive hull continued, marked by a green dash along the center that was accompanied by the seal of the Allied Systems. The top deck was the hanger for the ship's fighters, with both a landing deck and launch tubes for rapid deployment. Around the drive hull were four large warp nacelles in a flat X layout.  
  
The azure-sheened vessel, in the service of the interuniversal United Alliance of Systems, was the most unique and arguably most advanced vessel in the Alliance fleet. Constructed with Darglan technology, some of which had yet to be matched by the Alliance itself, the ship was a standard-bearer for the Alliance it served.  
  
But simply because she was such, it did not mean that the more mundane elements of life could not be found within her kilometer-long hull.  
  
The private corner of the gymnasium area had a small group standing and watching. Among them was the ship's Chief Medical Officer Doctor Leonard Gillam. Known as Leo to his friends, he was wearing a standard duty uniform with the blue medical trim bordering the primarily black coloring of the uniform. A white labcoat with his name embroidered over the right chest was worn over the uniform. He stood with his arms crossed and a bemused look on his face. "He can't hold it that much longer."  
  
"Aren't ye underestimatin' th' Cap'n a wee bit, Doctor?", asked the much older Commander Montgomery Scott. The old Starfleet legend known to many as "Scotty" was now Chief Engineer of the _Aurora_. It was a post that he enjoyed, allowing him to work with the Darglan technology that the _Aurora_ crew had introduced him to and to mentor the young people that had literally saved his life. He was in his favored engineer outfit of a black vest over a white jacket with black trousers, his three gold strips of rank insignia fitted on the right of the vest.  
  
"I've got ten credits that says he drops it within a minute." The better was the ship's Operations Officer, Lieutenant Commander Jarod, with the beige color of Operations on his black uniform. The lack of a surname was intentional on the part of the savant, whose ability to function in any occupation on account of his incredible intelligence had previously earned him the sobriquet of "the Pretender".  
  
"Yeah, no offense Jarod, but I don't think anyone is willing to bet against you." That was from the _Aurora_ 's Navigation Officer, Lieutenant Nicholas Locarno. A native of Universe S5T3 like Scotty, he was standing and watching with a bemused look and crossed arms. The red of ship control and command was on his uniform.  
  
"I'll take that bet." The offer was from Lieutenant Lucilla "Lucy" Lucero, Jarod's immediate subordinate. Unlike the others she wasn't in a uniform or engineer's vest, but wearing a brown robe much like the subject of their discussion.  
  
The five gave no reaction at the steady glare they got from the second figure in their sight. Lieutenant Commander Meridina - a Gersallian, one of a number of species in various universes who resembled Humans on the outside - was not in uniform. Nor was she in the brown robe, but rather a blue robe that had been set to the side for the moment with only the dark purple bodysuit remaining as her garb. Robes did not quite go well with standing on one's hand.  
  
Despite the fact that the _Aurora_ 's chief of security was upside down, her slight irritation with Lucy's snarkiness was evident. Lucy returned it with a brief sticking out of her tongue, a customary act of rebellion toward her teacher. She endured the telepathic scolding that came without saying a thing of it, or even thinking much of it. Meridina, as it was, had other things on her mind. The need to focus on the fifty kilogram barbell weight she was holding up with her life force abilities, for instance.  
  
But she was not the center of attention. That was to her newest student. Captain Robert Dale was wearing a sleeveless vest that had been tucked into red sweat pants, a concession to the fact that he too was standing on his hand and upside down. But he was not quite as poised as Meridina. He wobbled slightly, one way and then another, as he struggled to keep himself stable. His other hand was held out as well. But where Meridina was holding up the barbell, he was doing the same with a simple digital notepad. Sweat continued to drip from his brow to the mat. His green eyes were intent upon the notepad.  
  
Everyone else counted down the time. Lucy gave a bemused look to Jarod when the sixty second mark was passed. He smirked and handed her a bill drawn from his uniform pocket.  
  
As she put it with her things, Robert swayed a little too far back. He struggled to keep his position and let go of the notepad. It nearly clattered on the floor before he grabbed it again. This, however, distracted him further from keeping his balance. It had shifted the other way. This time, there was not going to be a last minute correction. Robert toppled over with a "Woh!" and belly-flopped onto the mat with enough force to knock the air out of his lungs for a moment. "Unh!"  
  
"Damn. I was off by seven seconds," Jarod groused.  
  
Meridina set the barbell down gently. Lucy watched her make an elegant jump off her hand to land upright on her feet. Like she had just made a short hop. "I shall have to restrict our training to holodecks only," Meridina sighed to Lucy. She looked over the crowd. "You gentlemen should know better than to disturb Robert in his training," she said to Jarod and the others in a pointed tone. A sharp pointed one, that is. "Especially you." That line was specifically directed at Lucy, who pretended to ignore it for the moment.  
  
Robert rolled over onto his back and sat up to see everyone looking at him. "You guys really find entertainment in my misery?", he asked.  
  
"It's just interesting," Nick insisted. "Misery's pushing it."  
  
"Although there is a certain amusement to it," Jarod admitted with a playful smirk.  
  
Robert matched that smirk. "Meridina," he said, "please remind me later to see if Commander Andreys can find a way to assign our senior staff to punishment duty in waste extraction."  
  
Meridina smiled at that. "An interesting proposition." A mischievous twinkle appeared in her brilliant blue eyes. "I will have to remember that."  
  
"That is not playing fair," Leo complained.  
  
Robert reached up and let Meridina help him up. "Alright everyone, back to work," he said. "The show's over. I'll see you two on the bridge." He eyed Jarod and Locarno.  
  
As everyone started leaving, he looked to Meridina. "I'm at least improving, aren't I?"  
  
"You are," she agreed. "Which is why we will make your object heavier starting tomorrow."  
  
Robert made a face at that. "You are more sadistic than my wide receiver coach back in High School. Do you know that, Meridina?"  
  
"Truly?" That bemused twinkle returned to her eye. "I may have to seek this coach out and consult with him. Perhaps he will know ways to better train you."  
  
The mental image caused Robert to chuckle, even if it also seemed a bit horrifying. Lucy did so as well. "You're starting to get it," Lucy said. She didn't speak on how he seemed to be going slower than she had in the learning. Everyone learned this thing at their own speed, after all.  
  
"Indeed." Meridina picked her robe up. "I understand you have duties to get to. I need to begin Lucy's training for the day." She gave her other student a look. "I suspect she will not enjoy it all herself."  
  
"It's Meridina's excuse to make me suffer," Lucy sighed.  
  
"Yeah, I sort of got that." Still favoring his ribs a little, if just from the sheer surprise of his belly-flop's impact, Robert started walking away. "I'll see you later."  
  
  
  
  
An hour later Robert was in his ready room with a number of digital pads on the desk. Each had information demanding his attention. The provider of those pads remained standing on the other side of the desk with a look of tried patience in her green eyes.  
  
Commander Julia Andreys, the First Officer of the _Aurora_ and his oldest friend - and by oldest he meant that they had known each other so long that they couldn't remember a time they didn't know each other closely - had put her rich blond hair into a ponytail at the back of her head. Their black uniforms had red trim at the shoulders and cuffs and elsewhere that denoted them as command officers. Each looked to be in the pinnacle of health for adults in their late 20s. "How is the training going?", she asked.  
  
"It is proceeding," he answered, being intentionally vague. "Angel is getting used to it. It's odd that after everything, this stuff is the thing that's causing the most problems in our relationship.  
  
"Angel has never been one for metaphysics," Julia noted.  
  
Robert nodded and continued looking over the pads. "Well, it looks like we owe a debt of thanks for the work of the Command Spacedock repair crews."  
  
"We do. The flight deck is operating just fine."  
  
Seeing a note on a second datapad with personal listings, Robert asked, "We actually have a Gy'toran crewmember now?"  
  
Julia nodded. "Crewman Peglemitar. He's assigned to the machine shop, Bravo Shift."  
  
"Well, I suppose a machine shop's a good place for a hexalimbed crewman to be." Robert continued to look over the listing. "And… seriously, a _Zygonian_? I didn't even think they were signing up."  
  
"This one is." Julia smiled thinly. "Crewman Thalaz is actually asking permission to train with Padre Mann."  
  
Robert blinked.  
  
"I thought you knew that?" Julia's smile grew. "That the Zygonians were Catholic?"  
  
"No. No I did not," Robert admitted.  
  
"And they have their own Pope."  
  
At that, Robert shook his head. "Universe S0T5 is _weird_."  
  
Julia chuckled. "So, C1P2 Earth," she said.  
  
"C1P2 Earth," he answered, nodding. "We're not making a full visit, obviously. Still…"  
  
"...you get to remember the guy responsible for Bleeding Sumner trying to break another cane," Julia said, smiling widely. "On _your_ head."  
  
"Laying that guy out with a punch was one of the most fun things I ever did."   
  
Robert drew in a sigh. "It used to be so simple, didn't it Julia?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"We just went around rescuing people, helping them. No government business, no Nazis… just us and a bunch of small ships, and the closest thing we had to a uniform was that we all started to wear something blue half the time."  
  
"Those were the days."  
  
"There are times I wonder," Robert admitted. "That I wonder if things wouldn't be better off if we had never let ourselves get pulled into this stuff. If we had just kept doing our own thing and helping people who needed it."  
  
"I think this life has its own rewards." Julia looked over a datapad. They felt a slight thrum go through the ship. The _Aurora_ had dropped out of warp. "I'd rather not look back."  
  
Robert opened his mouth to reply. As the sound formed in his throat a tone at his desk interrupted him. He reached his hand over from one of the digital pads and pressed an acceptance key. "Dale here."  
  
" _Captain, we've just come out of warp_ ", Jarod replied. " _You… I think there's something you need to see._."  
  
Robert's initial reaction was confusion. Confusion that was clear in his expression and shared in Julia's bewildered look. He could feel disbelief coming from outside the room. They stood up at the same time and made it for the door. Jarod was at Ops. "What is it?"  
  
"We just made orbit of Earth C1P2," Jarod said. He looked ahead at the screen. "Look."  
  
Robert and Julia fixed their gaze on the viewscreen.  
  
The breath left their lungs in a collective gasp of disbelief.  
  
C1P2 Earth was _burning_.  
  


**Undiscovered Frontier  
_"A Dark Reflection"_**

  
  
  
The image of the Earth on his screen was one Robert knew would remain with him for the rest of his life. The Earth of C1P2 was literally burning in front of his eyes. Smoke was filling the atmosphere from the bright orange blazes covering the urban centers.  
  
"What the hell?", he gasped. "What happened here?"  
  
Caterina Delgado, the ship's Science Officer and younger sister to Robert's girlfriend Angela, was already hard at work at her sensor station. "I'm scanning now. There is some kind of energy signature coming from some of the cities. I think they were subjected to limited energy weapon bombardment."  
  
"Going by comparisons to our old sensor returns, we're looking at a death toll in the millions," Jarod said. "Tens of millions. It's hard to get adequate readings. Most of the urban areas in Europe have been damaged and a few outright destroyed. So have a number of the big cities in the Indian Subcontinent and East Asia. Cape Town, Cairo, Rio de Janeiro…"  
  
"What could have done this?", Julia asked. Her voice was hoarse with horror. "This world didn't have _anything_ approaching the technology to manage this. Someone else did this."  
  
A very horrible prospect crossed Robert's mind. His stomach clenched in anticipation as he asked, "Jarod, Cat…. could this be the Nazis?" After all they had done to keep Darglan technology out of the hands of the Third Reich of Universe S4W8, could they have failed in the end?  
  
"No," Cat said, to his immediate relief. "The energy signature doesn't match Nazi disruptor technology."  
  
"Then what does it match?", Julia asked. "Can you tell us that?"  
  
Caterina took a few moments before answering. "No. No, I… this can't be right."  
  
"What?", Julia asked. "What's wrong?"  
  
"The readings. The energy type. There's only one ship that could have caused them."  
  
Robert and Julia turned their heads to their left to face the sensor station on the port side of the bridge. "Who?", Robert asked.  
  
Cat had a look of pure confusion on her face when she turned back to face them. It was not a common look for her, and the fact she had it made the situation all the more dire.  
  
But not as dire as her answer.  
  
"Us," Caterina said.  
  
  
  
  
Everyone had assembled in the ship's main conference room. They heard the news. "What do you mean it was us?", Leo asked Cat.  
  
"Us as in the _Aurora_ ," she answered. "The weapons used to devastate the planet were our main batteries."  
  
"You mean the ship used the same tech…"  
  
"No. Not just the same tech… only the _Aurora_ has pulse plasma cannons big enough to cause this kind of pattern," Caterina insisted. "Only our ship. No others."  
  
"No others that we know of," Jarod clarified.  
  
"What about the monitoring probe we left?", Julia asked. "Why didn't it alert us to what happened?"  
  
"Because whoever was here knew how to hack its programming," Jarod explained. "It was reset to transmit false sensor information to the Alliance. If we hadn't come out to check them out, we would never have known what happened here."  
  
"And what happened here…" Robert looked back to the readings. "...is that the _Aurora_ apparently bombed the planet."  
  
"Going by the energy signatures at least," Jarod said. "Obviously we couldn't have done it."  
  
"Could this be an attack on us? As in literally us?", Angela Delgado asked out loud. She was frowning. "Maybe this is some attempt by Admiral Davies to frame us? Maybe he had a ship built to carry cannons like ours…"  
  
Julia shook her head. "I find it hard to believe he'd be able to do that and not be found out. I mean, we haven't had the opportunity to launch these kinds of attacks. We just got back out into space a few weeks ago and Admiral Maran's been keeping us busy."  
  
"But maybe…"  
  
"Whatever's going on, I want us to be careful with this investigation," Robert interceded. "I've already sent what we have to Admiral Maran and asked for instructions. Jarod, Cat, Scotty, I'd like you to over the sensor records. See if you can find out more about this. We'll hold position until we get orders."  
  
Leo raised a hand. "What about the people down there? Every minute we waste, we could be saving thousands."  
  
"We only have so many resources, Leo," Robert pointed out. "And until I hear otherwise, the planet is still legally protected by the contact limitation regulations."  
  
"So we're just going to leave people to die?", Leo asked. His voice was sharp.  
  
Robert frowned at that. "If we go down, it might be the opening Hawthorne and Davies have been looking for," he pointed out.  
  
"So it's not worth the lives we'll save?"  
  
Robert drew in a breath. He had nothing to say to that. Leo was right.  
  
Julia spoke up. "You know, the contact regulations make it clear that there are exceptions. We can stop a calamity caused by more advanced technology they shouldn't have, for instance. And having a bunch of cities burnt out by plasma weaponry certainly counts as a calamity caused by something not from 19th Century Earth. A limited mission should be feasible."  
  
Robert thought it over in his head. "Alright," he conceded. "We'll never be able to help everyone so… Leo, I'll leave it to you. Pick where we send medical teams and we'll do what we can. In the meantime, Jarod, see if those communication devices we left are still working. Maybe there's still a functioning government down there that can respond to us."  
  
"I'll do what I can," he said.  
  
"You're all dismissed," Robert said.  
  
As everyone filed out of the room, Meridina and Lucy nodded to each other. They rushed to join Leo in the turbolift linking the conference room to the ship's lift tubes and entered right behind him. Before he took notice of them, he said, "Deck 12." Then he turned to them. "Commander, Lucy," he said.  
  
"Doctor, we would be interested in going down with you," Meridina said.  
  
"Well, I will need security. And a pilot for the _St. Johns_. So it'll work."  
  
"Good," Lucy said. "See you in the shuttle bay in half an hour?"  
  
"Try twenty minutes," he pointed out.  
  
"I will prepare a security team."  
  
"Prepare four, I'm sending half of my surgeons down to various locations," Leo said. "I'm not having it said I played favorites."  
  
"Of course. I will make preparations and meet you in the shuttle bay."  
  
  
  
  
It didn't take long for Admiral Maran to respond. The Gersallian admiral was one of the most respected commanders in the entire Alliance. Years before the Alliance he had defeated the Tresalian Domination in its attempt to conquer the L'wi'ma, overseen the Dorei-Gersallian fleet that broke the power of the Coserian Empire, and more recently had commanded the Alliance and allied fleets that had utterly destroyed an entire Nazi battle fleet at New Austria. Robert noted that whatever stresses he now held as the head of President Morgan's Defense Staff, he hadn't added any new gray to the lines of gray through his otherwise-brown hair and beard. " _We've gone over your data and reports here in Portland. It's causing a lot of concern, obviously._ "  
  
"It's causing it here too, sir," Robert replied. He was alone in his ready room. Outside the window the Earth was still turning beneath them. "I can't help but think someone's trying to frame us. But I don't see how anyone with the ability to could do so and think it'd work. The _Aurora_ has been on the go for weeks and in the dock for weeks before that. We've never had an opportunity to make an attack like this."  
  
Maran could tell what he was thinking of. " _It wasn't Hawthorne or Davies, Captain. I'm quite sure of that._ "  
  
"How could you be sure? They put a spy in my crew, sir…"  
  
" _I know. But I saw their reactions to the news. They're more horrified than anything. We all are. The ramifications of this are major._ "  
  
Robert nodded. "If we didn't do it, and it didn't come from the Alliance…"  
  
" _...then someone else did. Someone else with access to Darglan technology._ "  
  
"I've been worried that the Nazis might have gotten something from the Gamma PIratus base. But could they have put anything into action this soon?"  
  
" _I doubt it. According to our sources, the Reich's been reeling ever since the fight at New Austria. Over a dozen major colony worlds have rebelled and come under the protection of our fleet. They're throwing everything they have into establishing a new defensive position in Dralensa… or whatever they call it in their maps._ " Maran shook his head. " _With just a few months? I doubt they could have fitted an IU drive and Darglan plasma weapons to a ship this quickly._ "  
  
"If it's not them, then it has to be someone else." A thought came to Robert's mind. "When we went over the data from the Darglan databanks we recovered in E5B1, I remember that they included the existence of a third Facility. On another Earth."  
  
" _That is a possibility. And that's what you're going to investigate. Your prior orders are suspended for the time being, Captain. I want all effort put into finding out what attacked C1P2 and where they got their Darglan technology._ "  
  
"I thought you'd want that, sir. I already assigned Jarod and Cat to an investigation." A thought came to him. "Admiral, I was wondering…"  
  
" _Yes?_ "  
  
"You've yet to assign us a support ship," Robert pointed out. "Haven't the Colonies settled now? I thought the _Koenig_ would be re-assigned by now."  
  
" _Ah, yes._ " Maran nodded. " _It is my understanding that the final decision on where they will settle is being decided by their election. As soon as we have confirmation of their choice and the needed steps have been taken, I'll send Commander Carrey his new orders._ " Maran's expression betrayed some concern. " _I hope his time with the Colonials has improved upon his issues being under your command._ "  
  
"I think things will be better this time," Robert answered. He grinned slightly. "Zack just needed a chance to spread his wings and fly."  
  
  
  
  
Laughter filled the military comm channels used by the Colonial fleet. Commander Zachary Carrey, of the _Starship Koenig_ , continued his enthusiastic laughter as he banked the Mark VII Viper from the Battlestar _Pegasus_ around his ship. The squat, tough little _Koenig_ was in her place beyond the Colonial Fleet and provided him plenty of room for maneuver. Her azure-sheened hull moved along quickly above him. He banked again and sent his ship within the forward wing-like sweep of its port warp nacelle, just beside the emitters for the vessel's powerful pulse phaser cannons.  
  
Behind him another Viper soared in pursuit. Captain Kara "Starbuck" Thrace, commanding the _Pegasus_ ' fighters, was his wingman/competition for this flight. She was pushing her Viper as hard as Zack was pushing his. The only reason she'd fallen a half second behind was his tight maneuver around the _Koenig_ 's aft section twenty seconds earlier.  
  
But now her Viper accelerated further. Zack went for the nose of the _Koenig_ and the purported finish line. Just as he reached it Kara's Viper zoomed past. " _Dammit!_ ," he shouted, laughing. "I almost had it!"  
  
" _Almost doesn't cut it, Loverboy._ "  
  
Zack blinked as he powered his engines down to a standard acceleration. The _Koenig_ was now behind them. "Excuse me? 'Loverboy'?"  
  
" _That's your new handle_ ," Kara announced. " _Our pilots all agreed on it._ "  
  
"Seriously? _'Loverboy'_? That's..."  
  
" _Everyone in the Fleet has to know by now how that cute nurse has you wrapped around her finger, Carrey_ ," was the reply. " _So that's your official handle. End of story._ "  
  
He had to chuckle at that. "Well, I suppose there are worse. I would have picked 'Fastball' myself."  
  
" _Hopefully not too fast, or your nurse might move on._ "  
  
"Oh. Oh, that smarts…" Zack chuckled again. "I've got to say, I love how these things handle. They're lighter than our Mongoose fighters."  
  
" _Yeah, but your fighters carry heavier ordnance and have all of the extra tech on them. I wouldn't mind your people building us a Mark VIII with all of your toys._ "  
  
"Maybe they are." He eyed his fuel reserves and the time. "Well, I suppose I'd better get back. Coming to the game? The eight-to-ten year old bracket teams are holding their championship, first round play. I think the kids from the _Faru Sadin_ are going to give a real good game, I haven't seen batting that good in ages."  
  
" _Samuel will be there, so I'll be there. Let's get back, Loverboy._ "  
  
Zack shook his head and couldn't get the smirk off his face. "I'm on your wing, Starbuck."  
  
" _Good._ " There was a pause. "Pegasus _Actual, this is Starbuck. Coming back now. Let Colonel Fisk know I'll have that readiness report ready for him soon._ "  
  
" _The Colonel isn't here, ma'am. He left for meetings._ ," a voice replied. Zack recognized it as Lieutenant Hoshi from the _Pegasus_. " _But I'll make sure he gets the report as soon as he gets back._ "  
  
Zack noticed that Kara went to their direct taclink before saying, " _Well, frak it all. He rides my ass for it and now this?_ "  
  
"He does seem to go off for plenty of meetings, doesn't he?", Zack noted. "I wonder if it's over the election."  
  
" _If he endorses anyone, the Old Man will have his head._ "  
  
That sounded right. Adama had made it pretty clear in meetings with the various officers under his command that the election was meant to be hand's off. No endorsing, just vote quietly and be done with it. Or not vote at all in Zack's case.  
  
There was nothing more to be said as they flew back to the _Pegasus_.  
  
  
  
  
Leo had sent multiple teams to various points of Earth C1P2 to do something, anything, to help the inhabitants. He couldn't ignore his own sentiments having weighed in on his choice of location, however. His family had originally come from Georgia, and it was to Georgia and the flaming wreckage not far from Atlanta that he and his team arrived.  
  
Meridina and Lucy had helped to set everything up. Now a long line of people, black and white, were forming to accept the food coming from the _St. Johns_ ' replicator and the medical treatments Leo and his nurses were offering.  
  
One bedraggled couple, poor white farmers, were waiting at the door when Leo emerged with a four year old boy. "I gave him treatments for the fever," he told them. "He'll be okay."  
  
"Hallelujah," the weeping mother said.  
  
Leo watched them go. Next up were two young ex-slaves with equally tattered clothing to the prior couple. A pair of infants were in their arms and barely moved. "Please, massa," the man said. "Help ou' poor babes."  
  
"Don't call me that," Leo said abruptly. He caught himself and winced. "I'm sorry. I'm Doctor Gillam, not 'Master' or 'Massa'. And let me see…" He ran his medical scanner over them and looked at the results on his multidevice screen. "They were premature. They're too weak. Djamal!" A male Dorei nurse emerged from the medical module in the runabout. Leo indicated them. "Take them in. Put nutrient IVs on the babies, stat."  
  
"Yes Doctor." The blue-skinned, purple-spotted Dorei looked to the awestruck people. "Please, come with me," he said.  
  
Whatever terror or bewilderment the sight of an alien gave the couple, their need to care for their children overrode that sentiment. They quietly followed Djamal in. Behind them, one of Meridina's security officers quietly entered the module as well. The Thai woman's hand was resting on her pistol holster. Leo didn't quite like that, but he imagined it was better to be prepared when around desperate people.  
  
Nearby Meridina and Lucy were handing out food rations. "Such terrible loss," Meridina observed. "You feel it?"  
  
Lucy nodded. She had grown more sensitive to the Flow of Life since Meridina had introduced it to her on the Citadel. She could faintly make it out here. It was cold and quiet, not at all possessing the warmth and vibrance she had first seen. "I do. Is this why you wanted to come down?"  
  
"Somewhat. Did you feel as I did? The pull to this place?"  
  
"Yeah, I did," Lucy said. "It's why I landed here when Leo picked 'Georgia'. I felt like we needed to be here. LIke this is where we could do the most good."  
  
"Yes." Meridina nodded. "As did I."  
  
"Who could have done this?"  
  
"I am not sure. But…" Meridina went silent for a moment. "Wait."  
  
There was a growing commotion in the lines. An older man, white with graying and bedraggled hair and the ruins of what had once been a nice black suit, was howling in their direction. "What are you doing?!", he screamed. "Have you no pride!? You come to these fanatics, these murdering thieves, why? There shouldn't be a white face here! Have you lost your pride?!"  
  
Leo and Meridina stepped up toward the trouble-maker. "His mind is unhinged," Meridina warned.  
  
"Sir, please calm down," Leo said in a quiet voice. "We'll get you food and medical…"  
  
The older man's shrieking cut him off. "I'll have nothing from you, _nigger_!"  
  
Meridina felt the revulsion and anger surge in Leo. "I am unfamiliar with that word," she said. "Is it an insult?"  
  
"Racial slur," was his simple reply. Leo kept his attention on the man. "Then if you're not going to accept our help, sir, I suggest you leave."  
  
"This is _my home!_ ," the man thundered. "Mine! It'll always be mine! They'll always be mine!" He gestured toward the line of people. It wasn't hard to guess which of those in the line he was talking about. "All of this land is mine! You can drive off the O'Haras, the Hamiltons, the Wilkeses… but not me! My land! Won by my family! I…"  
  
Leo made ready to tranquilize the raving man. But before he could, their verbal assailant stopped. Horror started to cross his face.  
  
Meridina felt the horror. She could also feel something else. A presence of some sort. She looked around at the crowds and saw nothing. Nothing with her eyes anyway. But there was someone else here. That she was certain of.  
  
The older man screamed an inarticulate phrase and started running toward the nearby trees. Leo looked at Meridina. "He's mad, isn't he?"  
  
"Mad with grief and loss and terror," she said. "But I believe he has reason to run. Please, remain here and continue the work. I will be back shortly." Meridina looked to Lucy. "Be on your guard. Feel with your _swevyra_."  
  
Lucy nodded.  
  
Meridina turned and pursued the man into the woods.  
  
  
  
  
The crazed man was Lionel Roger Cobb. He had been born on the family plantation, raised there, educated in the finest university in Georgia, and became one of many of his class to assume political and social authority in their state.  
  
And he'd owned slaves of course. When news started coming in of mysterious attacks on plantations, of entire plantations being stripped of slaves, he'd hired even more overseers and cracked down on his workers even more. For their own protection. There was no telling what crazed abolitionist force was responsible. And he had supported secession as a matter of course when the Northern states failed to ratify the amendment to protect slavery in the Union.  
  
And then the fires had come. The bolts from the sky, unlike any lightning, that ruined his family home and killed his wife and daughters and son. His remaining slaves had run off in the chaos that followed the judgement from the skies and he had been left alone.  
  
But for Cobb, the important thing was that he knew he was being pursued. He knew why. He'd seen the old home at Tara and what the abandoned home was being used for.  
  
His tired, famished body forced Cobb to stop. He couldn't continue on as he was. He was too weak. But he had to escape. Escape the phantom who dwelt there.  
  
"Did you think I'd forgotten you?", a voice called out.  
  
Cobb's blood froze. Through his madness he knew he was about to die.  
  
"Do you remember her name, Lionel Cobb?", the voice asked. "The name of the slave girl your son raped?"  
  
"My boy knew better than to touch them!", Cobb raged. "Liars! All liars! They said so!"  
  
"They said so after you stripped the flesh from their backs," the voice pointed out. Anger had seeped into it. "And now I'm going to kill you for that."  
  
"Abolitionist monsters! Fanatics! You've burned everything!", Cobb screamed. He knew he was about to die.  
  
There was movement. He turned. The man in the dark suit was there. Dark brown hair could be made out at the edge of his helmet. His skin was light in complexion and tanned by exposure to the sun.  
  
And a blade protruded from his wrist.  
  
Cobb screamed in defiance at him as the man advanced, hatred burning in his brown eyes.  
  
  
  
  
Meridina heard the screaming of the man that had accosted them. He was in conversation with… who knew? Meridina could sense the life slightly. Cold. Angry. Vengeful. She drew her _lakesh_ and activated it as she stormed into the clearing.  
  
There was a rustle of leaves. But nobody was there.  
  
Nobody but the dying man.  
  
The man who had verbally accosted them at their camp was lying in a crimson pool. A stab wound bubbled blood. He'd been stabbed in the lung. Intentionally.  
  
Meridina rushed to his side and called upon her power. Away from the Flow of Life, though, amid the darkness and suffering of this world, she wouldn't have the power to heal him completely. But maybe if she…  
  
The man grabbed her arm as light formed over his wound. "Tara!," he screamed. "At Tara! He'll kill us all!"  
  
"Sir, you must…"  
  
Meridina felt that she was too late. The man was drowning in his own blood. But while she tried to stop that, his heart gave out. It had endured too much. She felt the blood go still underneath her hands. He was dead.  
  
But even then, she could feel something. Someone was here. Watching. Waiting. She breathed in and focused, trying to see him.  
  
" _Meridina?_ " Lucy's voice crackled over the multidevice. " _Meridina, are you there? The people say that old coot's name was Cobb. Lionel Cobb. Some bigtime slave owner in the area, until the bombardment blew up his family home and killed his family._ "  
  
"He is at peace now," Meridina replied.  
  
" _What? You mean he's dead? How?_ "  
  
"Murdered. Stabbed." Meridina examined the wound. "The blade was powerful and sharp. I can sense that it cut through his ribs when he was stabbed in the lung." She drew in a breath and felt with her senses. She knew there was something out here. Not immediately here anymore, but moving away. "Lucy, Doctor Gillam, do any of the people here know about a place called Tara?"  
  
There was a pause before Leo replied. " _It's a burnt out old plantation in the area. About three miles to the northeast._ "  
  
"I see." She kept her focus on that feeling of life in movement. A dark sensation even in this darkened world. "Lucy, I may have need of you. Please come to meet me."  
  
" _I'll be right there._ "


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Aurora crew return to the 1850s-era Earth they once interfered with and encounter a deadly new foe; Zack and his crew prepare to depart from the Refugee Fleet as the election between Roslin and Baltar comes to its final, surprising conclusion.

Zack was in one of _Cloud 9_ 's restaurants to get a quick lunch before the game. The food selection had vastly improved over the past two months. Now that the Colonial Fleet was in Alliance space, moving through Dorei territory, it had access to all sorts of raw materials and foodstuffs from the Alliance races. The menu selections had changed to show that.  
  
But Zack didn't have menus on his mind. Just the bright blue eyes of Clara Davis, resplendent in her nursing uniform, her hand and his together across the table. She gave him her homey, sweet country girl smile and made his heart flutter. To see her happy, and to know how happy he felt… it had never seemed possible that he would feel like this. It almost made him want to leave the Stellar Navy and just move into the Fleet permanently.  
  
Not that he would. He couldn't. Not with the war on. Not with the people who needed him. But maybe when it was over…  
  
"How long?", Clara was asking. The question jolted him from his thoughts.  
  
"Hrm?", Zack asked.  
  
"How long until you're re-assigned?" A sad smile was on her face. "You said that it would probably be after the Fleet reached Alliance space."  
  
"Oh." He stopped for a moment. "Admiral Maran's last message said it would be after the election. This part of Dorei space is still a little thin on patrols due to the war, so keeping _Koenig_ here to help protect the fleet from the Cylons is necessary. Once they decide whether or not to settle on that planet the Dorei offered them, or if they want to go elsewhere, we'll be on."  
  
"And that won't happen until the election."  
  
"Yeah. Roslin's proposing leaving N2S7 completely. To get a new start back in our home universe. Maybe at the New Liberty Colony, or another world nearby."  
  
"And Baltar wants to accept the Dorei offer?"  
  
"He does. He says leaving our home universe is conceding too much to the Cylons. That we…" Zack caught himself. He noticed the amused look on Clara's face. "...well. I'm going a bit native, aren't I?"  
  
"We all are," Clara noted. "You live and eat and work with people long enough…"  
  
But it wasn't just that. Zack had always felt like he was out of place. Now he didn't. He felt at home here, more than he had anywhere for a long time.  
  
"Maybe when the war's over, I'll stay here permanently," he mused. "Wherever 'here' ends up being for the Colonial Refugees. They'll have a nice big open world, after all."  
  
"You could build a nice house," she said. "Near wherever they set up the baseball fields. Spend your time coaching the teams, school teams…"  
  
"...and you would be nursing at their hospital."  
  
Clara nodded. She clearly saw where he was going with this. And he liked it.  
  
A part of him, admittedly, still wanted to be on the _Koenig_. She was his ship. His tough little gutpuncher that he could fly with his eyes closed. Would he really feel torn, picking between the two?  
  
That thought was uncomfortable.  
  
There was a commotion near the bar. Their heads turned as people began to shout and carry on and argue. Zack stood and went closer to hear what was being said.  
  
The monitor there was on. The Colonial Fleet had started to pick up civilian subspace broadcasts. News, entertainment, and the like (the Fleet had actually set aside bandwidth for baseball feeds due to their growing popularity). But the look of the feed showed it was local. Something about the election, presumably.  
  
Tom Zarek, Quorum Representative for the survivors from Sagittaron, was on the screen, talking. "... _has come to light, I am no longer bound to remain quiet on the matter. In truth, I am relieved,_ " Zarek was saying. " _Relieved that the people of the Fleet should know the truth of what happened. How this wonderful opportunity for us was nearly lost by the President's blind fanaticism and short-sightedness._ "  
  
Zack had a very bad feeling. He felt Clara take his hand and look at him in confusion. He felt his face twisted into an expression of apprehension.  
  
" _The reports you have heard are true_ ," Zarek continued. " _President Roslin did order the abduction of the_ Aurora _crewmembers. She ordered the execution, without trial, of an Alliance officer. An act that would have destroyed our hopes if the Quorum not superseded her orders and straightened the issue out. Her entire handling of the first contact, from her religious bigotry against our new allies for their beliefs to her readiness to kill one of them to cover up the truth, should be a warning to us all about her unreliability and unsuitability…_ "  
  
" _Frakking liar!_ ", one man screamed.  
  
"Like you'd know!" That was from a nearby woman. "Roslin's always been arrogant! She nearly tore the fleet apart!"  
  
Another voice spoke up. "Spoken like a terrorist-loving Sagit..."  
  
As the arguing and shouting continued, Zack stepped away and shook his head. Clara looked at him with confusion. "What are they talking about? What did Roslin do?", she asked.  
  
"She made a mistake. Both sides did," Zack answered. "And now it's going to come back and haunt us all."  
  
  
  
Meridina felt the darkness of the place as she approached it. Once it had been a thriving manor of sorts. The central home of an estate. Now it was a burnt out shell.  
  
But that alone wasn't why she felt darkness here. There were other things here. Feelings of loss and grief. Despair. Anger. People had suffered here, physically or mentally or emotionally. It was a familiar sensation.  
  
The echoes of slavery.  
  
For all that it seemed a dead place, though, there was a life here. _A_ life. She could feel the sensations of anger coming from within. Anticipation. A tinge of uncertainty.  
  
Meridina extended her _lakesh_ as she approached the broken front door. Inside was a grand hall. A staircase led up to upper floors. Another hole was visible that showed a glimpse of an upper floor room. An old bedroom?  
  
Her _swevyra_ bristled. The Flow of Life here was weak. A small trickle. The place felt and smelled like death.  
  
As Meridina stepped beside the stairs she found a body. A young woman, dark-haired. Perhaps she had once been handsome, if not entirely pretty. Her torso was marked by stab wounds like those that had befallen the late Mr. Cobb. Her eyes stared with terror at Meridina. Whomever she had been, she had died a violent and horrific death at the hands of this dark figure.  
  
A few more steps, a turn, and further steps showed other bodies. Men and women. Mostly light-skinned, although one heavy-set woman was dark-skinned. Meridina had been told that slavery here had been based on ethnicity and skin complexion. A victim? Or someone loyal to the family that lived here? Living beings could bond even with their captors and declared owners, after all. That was how Life worked.  
  
Meridina stepped into a wide-open room. It had evidently been a mass gathering room of sorts. A massive human musical instrument - Julia had shown her something similar once called a "piano" - was a charred husk in one corner. The broken remains of seats and couches were scattered about the place.  
  
So were other things. Intact things. Something that looked like a field kitchen. A cot. A metal rack on which multiple firearms and weapons were arrayed.  
  
Meridina's blade leapt up just in time. Her arms moved by instinct, by her _swevyra_ , and intercepted the invisible blade that went for her ribs. A clang sounded in the air. She concentrated and sensed the being stalking her. The life there… it felt weaker than it should. Explaining how he had gotten so close, at least.  
  
But there was little time for that consideration. Blows struck at Meridina again and again, each time parried by her _lakesh_. She was on the defensive against this unseen foe and a speed that she had never seen a being make outside of having _swevyra_ of their own to power it. She was keeping up, but not effortlessly.  
  
It was time to reverse this conflict. To take her foe off-guard. Her power resonated with her thoughts, waiting to point out the perfect moment. The precise moment, when it would be time to _strike_.  
  
She deflected one strike and, immediately, drew her _lakesh_ over and down. There was a quick cry of surprise and a sound of the _lakesh_ 's blade cutting through metal.  
  
A figure rippled into view before her. A Human male, a little taller than she was, wearing a black combat suit. His age seemed to be about that of those of the _Aurora_ command crew. Firearms dangled from each of his hips. He was light-skinned, brown-eyed, with dark hair like Robert's that was less well-kept. His intense eyes were focused on her.  
  
He was holding no blade, though. Above each wrist, a sharp metal blade was protruding from within his suit, glinting in the dying sun within the burnt out plantation home.  
  
"I am Meridina," she said. "A Lieutenant Commander of the United Alliance of Systems and a _swevyra'se_ \- a Knight - of the Order of Swenya. Please explain who you are and why you murdered these people."  
  
The man appraised her. She could tell he was ready to resume their battle. But he was not without reason either. "My name's Hawk," he replied. "And I killed these slaving bastards because they deserved to die."  
  
"Did they?", Meridina asked. "Death should not be so easily imposed."  
  
"Why the hell not?", he demanded. "You do bad things, you meet a bad end. That's justice. So what are you doing here?"  
  
Meridina had a few answers she could give. That she was investigating the destruction of this world, certainly.  
  
But she chose the most honest one.  
  
"I am here," she said, "to stop you from killing anyone else."  
  
Hawk smirked at her. Arrogant confidence oozed from his posture, his very being. "I'd like to see you try, sunshine," he replied.  
  
For a moment he concentrated. The blades on his wrists grew longer, larger, until each was at least half the length of her _lakesh_. He surged forward…  
  
...and Meridina promptly slammed him back with her power, sending him into the opposite wall.  
  
For a moment Hawk didn't move. She had clearly surprised him. He was more cautious when he stood up and slowly walked toward her.  
  
"Surrender and you will not be harmed," she promised. "Perhaps there is something wrong in your mind…"  
  
Again he charged, inhumanly fast, and Meridina reacted by calling on her power again. She hit him with it, a blow even stronger than the last, and sent him flying back.  
  
It was her turn to feel surprise when he flipped in mid-air and let his feet hit the wall. He absorbed the force of the impact this way and jumped away from the wall before gravity started to pull him down. The jump was powerful and quick. She barely had time to call up her power again and throw it at him as he sailed over her.  
  
But Hawk was too quick. The blast missed and hit the roof above, sending rubble down into the room. As the roar of the collapse filled Meridina's ear she followed Hawk and brought the _lakesh_ up to deflect his first attacks. HIs longer blades had only barely slowed his blistering speed of attack. Strike after strike, blow after blow, clanged against her _lakesh_. But yet she felt nothing to indicate he had power like her, no essence of _swevyra_ beyond the natural one for a Human.  
  
It brought to mind the last foe to fight like this. A rogue Coserian stormtrooper she had faced when she was still just starting out as a _swevyra'se_. The Coserians had turned their stormtroopers into "cyborgs", as Lucy had called it, mechanized beings that were more machine than living. But that had dampened their _swevyra_ considerably. This man didn't have that kind of cyberization, he simply moved like he did.  
  
Their duel carried them across the room. One of Hawk's missed blows cut cleanly into a cooker for his field kitchen and destroyed it. He swung the other arm and had it deflected by Meridina's blade. When he struck with the first arm again, it cut against her robe and skidded against her armor. Meridina felt no pain; her armor had held against the glancing strike. But a direct hit might yet cut into her armor, so she refused to let him hit her.  
  
For all his speed, though, he couldn't stop her from getting in a similar blow against him. Her _lakesh_ cut at his face and left a deep wound across his right cheek. He stumbled back for a moment, clearly surprised that she'd managed the hit. "You're not enhanced," he said. "I'd know if you were."  
  
"I have my _swevyra_ , my life force, to aid me."  
  
"Interesting," was all he said.  
  
And Meridina watched as, without effort, the wound she'd inflicted started to heal rapidly. Within ten seconds the flow of blood had mostly ended and pink skin, not even scar tissue, was showing.  
  
_What is he?_ , she wondered, just before he lunged at her again.  
  
As the battle moved over the room, knocking over Hawk's cot in the process, it was clear they were closely matched physically. His enhanced speed, agility, and strength against her trained abilities as a Life Force Knight of Gersal.  
  
But there was more to battle than the physical. Meridina had trained for much of her life to be what she was. She had dueled with her father, her mentor, and countless others. She knew how to work her blades. Hawk clearly had some experience as well, but he seemed… not even basic, so much as strong.  
  
It occurred to her then. However strong he was… Hawk had never fought someone who could hold their own against what he had. Not someone like her anyway. He was used to brute force winning his battles. He didn't know how to use his weapons, his skills, as anything but a blunt instrument.  
  
Meridina tested that. She feinted and adjusted quickly. His blades moved to intercept and caught her. But his block wasn't carefully done.  
  
It didn't need to be. His boot shot up and hit Meridina in the stomach. The armor she was wearing kept her from feeling the full effect of the blow, but she still staggered back.  
  
Hawk's right blade retracted up his arm. In a split second his firearm was in his hand. Blue bolts erupted from it. Meridina knew what the weapon was immediately.  
  
The first bolt had been expertly aimed at her shoulder and she barely evaded a debilitating hit. Pain flashed through her flesh from the glancing hit. Another blast hit her in the hip, absorbed by the armor, and as for the third and on… that was where her _lakesh_ came into play.  
  
Again Hawk was stunned, as several bolts he was firing suddenly went at him. One smacked into his left arm and made him cry out. This allowed another to hit him in the knee. He toppled over. "What the…?!"  
  
Before he could react, Meridina put an end to the fight. It was not something she enjoyed doing, not this way, but she saw she needed to end this struggle immediately. She reached out with her mind using the telepathic powers that she and other Gersallian _farisa_ had. With that power, she put one powerful command into Hawk's mind.  
  
**_SLEEP!  
_**  
Hawk had no mental defenses. No mental training. Indeed his mind seemed particularly vulnerable. He collapsed like a school puppet with its wires cut.  
  
At that moment there was noise coming from a side door. Lucy came running in, having taken another entrance, with her _lakesh_ drawn. "Meridina!"  
  
Meridina was on one knee. Pain shot through her shoulder and she had placed her free hand there, her _lakesh_ lowered before her. "I am only mildly hurt," she insisted.  
  
Lucy was already activating her multidevice. The scanner in it wasn't specialized for medical needs but could, in instances like this, be used to assess basic problems. Lucy's face paled. "How is that possible?", she murmured.  
  
"Even the swiftest _swevyra'se_ cannot deflect everything fired at her," Meridina reminded her student.  
  
"No, not that." Lucy shook her head. "The damage pattern of that shot, I recognize it. His guns are…"  
  
"...yes." Meridina indicated the toppled weapon rack. It too had gone over in their struggle and spilled its deadly contents over the floor. Lucy looked it over and was shocked at what she saw.  
  
"These weapons…"  
  
"...they are Darglan," Meridina finished for her.  
  
  
  
  
With everything going on, Zack had left the little leaguers to their championship and beamed directly to the _Galactica_. Colonel Saul Tigh, current commander of the _Galactica_ , was waiting for him in the former storage room converted into a transporter room. Zack held himself at attention for a moment. Tigh had long learned to live with the lack of salutes - apparently the Alliance's multi-species elements meant that nobody could agree on a working salute - and returned one anyway to acknowledge Zack's gesture. "I'll ask you what the Admiral will want asked anyway," he said. "Could it have been your people?"  
  
Zack shook his head. "I don't see how. But just in case I have Lieutenant Apley investigating."  
  
"You trust him?"  
  
"Completely. Ap is no-nonsense follow-my-orders. He would never do something like this and if someone in my crew did he'll have him at my desk before the day is out."  
  
"I hope so. This is becoming a regular situation."  
  
Tigh led Zack to the main war room. As they approached they could hear Adama shouting. "... _our place! You had no authority to ignore my orders on that subject!_ "  
  
"A standing member of the Quorum asked me as part of the official investigation into the incident, sir." Zack didn't need to turn the corner when he did to know that Colonel Fisk from _Pegasus_ was the one speaking. "I was obligated by law to cooperate."  
  
"So you're telling me that somehow your private testimony ended up on the Fleet's News?", Admiral William Adama barked in retort. The older man was an inch away from Fisk's face. "Do I like that stupid, Colonel?"  
  
"No sir."  
  
"As far as I am concerned, you have lost all right to your command. As of now I am re-assigning you while we investigate how this 'private testimony' wound up spread across the Fleet."  
  
"I understand, sir," Fisk answered, with all the air of a man facing the expected and not giving a damn. "Permission to be dismissed."  
  
"Get out of my damned sight, Colonel."  
  
Fisk stepped away and back toward the door. He nodded briefly to Tigh before continuing on. Zack stepped in. "You found the leak?", he asked.  
  
Adama didn't look up from his seat. Zack could tell from his expression that he was restraining his anger at the situation. "Fisk says it was simply testimony to the Quorum's committee on the first contact," he answered. "He insists he knows nothing about the leak."  
  
"And you don't believe him?"  
  
"No." Adama shook his head. "Fisk knew that leak would happen."  
  
"So he's siding with Baltar?"  
  
"More likely Zarek. Yes."  
  
Zack took a seat. "What can I do for you then?"  
  
"I'd called to ask you about if your people were involved," Adama admitted. "A lot of people know about the stand-off, but very few the reasons why."  
  
"And among those few are Baltar and Zarek," Zack pointed. "I'm just surprised it took them this long."  
  
"Baltar is desperate. The balloting shows Roslin winning by several points. This is his one shot to beat her."  
  
"Assuming the Fleet doesn't come apart over the truth," Tigh added.  
  
"So what do you need me to do?", Zack asked.  
  
"I want to keep you informed while we deal with this," Adama said. "And a statement on what really happened would help."  
  
"Of course, I'll be happy to," Zack answered.  
  
  
  
Robert and Julia made a beeline for Lab 2 the moment Jarod called. They arrived to find him with Lucy looking over a rack of weapons. Familiar ones, familiar shapes.  
  
"Darglan pulse pistols," Julia observed. "And a new battle rifle?"  
  
"Not just Darglan, but better," Jarod remarked. He had one gun on a work table with a holographic image reaching through it and displaying a layout of its internal mechanics. "The power pack is at least thirty-percent higher capacity and the power and range could be dialed up to match. There also seems to be an internal mechanism that might be for changing the containment field."  
  
"You mean the way the gun turns energy into pulses?", asked Robert.  
  
"Right." Jarod nodded. "From what I can tell, this rifle can be set to alter the way the field works. Its capacity."  
  
"So what, more powerful shots?"  
  
"It's entirely possible it could turn a pulse powerful enough to create a small burst, like an explosion."  
  
"You mean it would fire like a grenade launcher," Robert said. "It would be the equivalent of an assault rifle with an underslung grenade launcher."  
  
"An apt summary," Jarod said.  
  
"Whatever it does, it's better than the guns we found back in the day," Lucy said.  
  
"Well, we know the Darglan wound up in a war before the Shadows wiped them out." Julia was looking over the weapons laid out. "They would have been trying to improve their weapons."  
  
"And it still leaves us with a lot of unanswered questions," Robert pointed out. "Like where this came from. Was it from that third Facility the data we recovered from IPX talked about?"  
  
Lucy shook her head. "There's no way to tell from this. We still don't know how many caches and Facilities the Darglan left."  
  
"Meridina reported that he dueled her with blades of some kind." Robert looked around. "What can you say about them?"  
  
Jarod and Lucy exchanged looks. "You need to go to Leo about those."  
  
That caused them some befuddlement. "Leo?" Julia shook her head. "Why Leo?"  
  
"Because that ties into what this 'Hawk' guy did to himself," Lucy replied.  
  
  
  
The medbay was active with numerous patients from the planet below. Leo's fellow doctors were tending to people from many areas across the globe while nurses ran about checking on the conditions of the seriously wounded or ill. "My God," Julia breathed as she took it all in.  
  
Robert nodded. "This is just a trickle. All of those people down there suffering from what's happening…" He gave Julia a haunted look. "Could this be our fault? Could our coming to this world have caused this?"  
  
"No. No, I don't think so," Julia insisted. "We didn't do this. And we never would have." She noticed the look on his face. He was pained and uncomfortable in a way she'd never seen before. "Are you…"  
  
"I can feel their fear," he said. "I can feel all of the despair and the confusion."  
  
"You're reading their minds?"  
  
"No." He shook his head. "I can't do that. I just… feel what they feel. Their entire world's been ravaged. Everything they knew and expected was taken away. Stripped away. Loved ones were killed. All of the old certainties removed. They're lost and adrift…"  
  
His voice trailed off. Julia gave him a moment to think before she intended to continue their conversation.  
  
Before she could, Nasri stepped up. The Darfurian Sudanese woman looked tense and worn down. The biobed she had just stepped from was covered in a sheet. An East Asian woman was on her knees beside it, wailing. "It was too late for him," she said upon seeing their faces. "Doctor Singh picked him up in China, from the ruins of Beijing. But he was already too far gone."  
  
"How bad is it?", asked Julia.  
  
"Bad." Nasri swallowed. "Untreated burns from exposure to plasma weaponry. Exposure. Starvation. Even a couple of cases of radiation sickness."  
  
"Something on this scale… we could send half of the hospital ships we have and still barely make a dent in it."  
  
"Yes. But it would still mean life for those we saved," Nasri pointed out, cutting off Robert's obvious observation.  
  
Julia was looking over the beds in the next part of the medbay. She spied two figures that made her blink. "No way… is that…?"  
  
Nasri looked that way. And she nodded. "Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, yes. Lucky ones. Particle weapon burns and complications thereof, starvation, and apparently overwork. An onset of renal failure, possibly Crohn's disease, for him. We're already treating it."  
  
"Why are they…"  
  
"If you're going to suspect favoritism, don't," Nasri insisted. "Doctor Lumenaram was leading the group sent down to England. He brought cases up based solely on severity of their condition."  
  
Robert nodded. "And Gersallians have never been the monarchist type. Just so long as I can mark that in the report." He wondered, briefly, how many other people he would consider "historical figures" had survived the bombardments. Abe Lincoln? General Grant? Richard Cobden? Who had survived? Investigative teams had yet to report in on the state of things in terms of surviving government.  
  
_This entire planet will need rebuilding. From the ground up. And while we're in the middle of a war._  
  
He looked away from all of the injured and dying. "We're not here to talk about that. Jarod and Lucy implied Leo had something to share with us about our… _guest_."  
  
Nasri nodded. Her expression was dark. "This way."  
  
She led them further into medbay. They went past the intensive care ward and on toward the quarantine ward. Behind a solid trans-steel wall they could see a figure laid out on a biobed. Two armed security officers were at the doors. Meridina was inside, looking at him intently.  
  
Leo was just stepping out. He motioned to them to follow him. He led them back toward his office. The transparent aluminum door slid closed behind them. "Jarod said you could explain the blades he used on Meridina?", Robert asked.  
  
Leo nodded. He looked tired and worn down. Both knew that he didn't like the fact that there were people here and below that were beyond his help. But he said nothing to that effect, focusing on his work by bringing up a display of a human figure. "I gave our visitor a full examination while Meridina keeps him under. Caucasian male, roughly twenty-two to thirty-five years of age, and I'm leaning toward the younger estimate myself. From the look of him and his body, I would definitely say post-industrial. He might even be from a late 20th Century or early 21st Century Earth."  
  
"Like us, and Jarod," Julia noted.  
  
"Right."  
  
"And the blades?"  
  
Leo tapped a key. The figure lit up with a great multitude of silvery threads all along the interior of the body, as if they were roots to the silver sheen over the skeleton. "Nanites," he said. "The interior of his body is crawling with them. They're covering his bones, embedded in his musculature and his organs, they flow in his cardiovascular system. He even has them in his nervous system."  
  
"My God…" Julia looked it over. "What did he do to himself? Or was this done to him?"  
  
"You'd have to ask him," Leo replied. "You know that briefing we got on the Borg? Or the reports on the Coserian cyberization of their soldiers?"  
  
"Cyborgs, yeah. Cybernetic enhancement." Robert nodded. "It replaces organic body parts with machines."  
  
"This…" Leo gestured to the image. "This is the ultimate evolution of that. And it's not even like becoming a cyborg. The nanites don't replace the organic material, they supplement it. His nerves operate faster, his organs are more efficient and sturdy, his bones and muscles are stronger… that kind of thing."  
  
"And that explains why Meridina couldn't put him down without breaking a sweat," Robert muttered. "With those kinds of enhancements…"  
  
"How do the nanites get energy, though?", Julia asked. "They must have to use a lot of energy to keep going."  
  
"A higher caloric intake, I'm guessing. This guy probably eats about eight, maybe ten thousand calories a day just to keep his current health. But that isn't all." Leo hit a key and brought up a much-magnified view of the man's bloodstream. Small blood cells floated within. As did several nanite cells. He pressed a second key and called up another nanite. They looked almost identical. "They're Darglan technology."  
  
"I was going to expect that," Robert sighed.  
  
"But we don't have anything like this," Julia pointed out.  
  
"Because the nanites in our Facility weren't this advanced. I only used them for serious medical cases. Like rebuilding Zack's jaw when it got broken that time. I never left them in anyone's body for longer than a few days." Leo shook his head. "But not this guy."  
  
"So… the blades he used to fight Meridina…"  
  
"...were the nanites in solid form," Leo explained. "Projected out of his lower arm or wrist, I'd guess, and with strong enough consistency to not be shattered by whatever Meridina's sword is made out of."  
  
"That _has_ to hurt," Robert pointed out.  
  
Julia shrugged. "Maybe he doesn't care. Or maybe the nanites shut down the nerves around the site so he can do it without feeling pain."  
  
"You will have to ask him," Leo said.  
  
"When was the last time you took a break?", Julia asked. Her expression betrayed her concern.  
  
"No," Leo mumbled. "Not now. I can't do the mothering right now, Julia. I've got sick people dying out there and I need every medical officer we have on duty to keep them alive."  
  
"Don't burn yourself out, Leo," Robert asked politely.  
  
"I know my limits." Leo gestured to the door. "I'll inform you if I find anything else. You can have Meridina take him to the brig if you want."  
  
It was clear he would brook no more conversation on the matter. They departed the office and went to the room for their guest. Meridina nodded at them.  
  
There was something about the man unconscious on the bed. Robert could feel a sense of harshness to him. Dark things, but light things too. "Leo's done with him."  
  
She nodded to Robert and then to her guards. The two helped her secure the man to an anti-grav stretcher.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Aurora crew return to the 1850s-era Earth they once interfered with and encounter a deadly new foe; Zack and his crew prepare to depart from the Refugee Fleet as the election between Roslin and Baltar comes to its final, surprising conclusion.

The brig was several decks down, toward the drive sections of the ship on Deck 20. Robert and Julia watched patiently as Meridina's people found a cell to use. Once the man calling himself "Hawk" was laid out on the bed inside the main brig cell, they all stepped out of it. A press of a button created a force field over the entrance into the cell. Robert nodded to Meridina. "Let him wake up."

After a few moments the man in the brig began to stir. He sat up and looked at them intently. "Now that you're awake, we have some questions for you," Robert stated.

The man looked at him intently. "Oh?"

"Who are you? What, who, are you working for?"

The smoldering anger in the man's brown eyes was now joined by a glint of mischief. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

"His name is Hawk," Meridina stated. "Or so he said, I should specify."

Robert considered the other man closely. "Why did you shoot yourself up with Darglan nanites?"

"I had my reasons." The figure slouched back in his seat. "I was wondering where all of those stories I heard came from. The people talking about how slaves kept getting whisked away. That used to be you?"

"Something like that," Robert admitted.

A bemused sneer came to Hawk's face. "So you're the one who was half-assing it, huh?"

Julia crossed her arms. "Pardon me?"

"Oh, hey, you've got a cheerleader too, I see."

"This is Commander Julia Andreys, my Executive Officer," Robert replied. "I'm Captain Robert Dale. You're aboard the Alliance _Starship Aurora_."

Hawk nodded. "Darglan Emergency Ship, I see. So when did you decide to name your prize after a Disney princess?"

"Someone doesn't know his classic mythology," Julia noted. She didn't need to glance at Robert to know what he was thinking. The more Hawk talked, the more chances they had to get information. _He sounds like he's from Oregon or Washington._

"The Roman goddess of the dawn," Hawk retorted, not knowing or not caring what they were up to. He feigned a yawn. "Boring. But it does say a lot about you people. Half-assing this entire planet, doing little things and patting yourselves on the back for it, and deciding to get all symbolic with your ship."

"I'm wondering just what you think we've done wrong," Robert queried.

Hawk laughed bitterly. "Oh, where do I start, Boy Scout? Do you know how much injustice existed on that world below? Did you do anything about it? Did you do anything for the Native tribes being stripped of their homelands by settlers? Did you do anything about the Indians looking to throw off British rule? No. No, all you did was pick up a few thousand people here and there. Dealing with the symptoms, not the disease itself."

"And you did?"

"Sometimes…" Hawk's smile was sharp and unpleasant. He held up his right arm. "Sometimes you just have to _cut_ to the heart of the problem." A sharp sound shot through the air in the brig. Silverish metal flowed from his wrist and coalesced into a vicious, sharp blade.

"So you bombed the world. That was your idea of 'solving the problems'? _Killing everyone_ , victims along with the guilty?," Julia demanded.

Robert was still learning his way through the mental components of his new abilities. It was Meridina who could to sense what Hawk was feeling. But despite it all, he could sense the tension, the raw frustration, in Hawk's being. "Things got out of hand, I'm guessing?"

"I was trying to demonstrate the hopelessness of their situation," Hawk said. "To make them understand they had no choice. Fitting, since it's the exact same thing they've been doing to the less-advanced societies on their own planet."

"But it wasn't so simple, was it?"

Hawk gave him a look. "Obviously not," he muttered. A distant look came to his eyes. "It wasn't supposed to happen that way."

"Millions of deaths. All on your hands," Robert said quietly. "You don't seem to be a monster, a psychopath without feeling anything for what you've done. Maybe if you cooperate we can…"

"...can what? Become a good little soldier like you? Wear a nice uniform and let bureaucrats and politicians tell me who I can or can't save?" Hawk chuckled bitterly at that. "To hell with that. I'm not some puppet on a string."

"You can't just keep going on like this forever," Robert pointed out. "Think about what you did on that world. Entire cultures and nations wrecked. Millions dead. Are you telling me that's what you want?"

Hawk's smile didn't go away. But it took a brittle edge to it. Robert could sense conflicting emotion with him. He got the sense the smile was frozen in place now, not in the least bit a genuine smile. "It'd be easier for you if I answered 'yes', wouldn't it?", he asked. "Then I could just be a monster."

"You'll end up in a cell now," Julia pointed out. "You're going to stand trial for what happened here. The people of this world will have justice."

"They wouldn't know 'justice' if it bit them on the rear," Hawk retorted. It was clear that his moment of quiet introspection was over - his combative nature had been rekindled, and he was ready for another fight.

Meridina had remained silent so far. She gave Robert and Julia a look and shook her head. It was clear she thought this discussion was now over, in terms of its practical value.

Robert wasn't quite done yet. He did have one more question to ask. "So, how long ago did you find the Darglan Facility?"

Hawk's face twisted into a pleased smirk. "So that's where you're finally going to go, is it? You want to know about that."

"We had our own." Robert kept his eyes on his captive. "We had to blow it up to keep it out of the hands of a species called the Daleks."

"Boo hoo for you, then," Hawk remarked. He gave some mocking applause. "Want ours?"

Robert and Julia exchanged looks. He had just confirmed he had accomplices, allies. Allies who might come back. "So who are you working with?"

Hawk seemed to think a moment. The smirk on his face grew. "That's going to be my little surprise, I think. Although it doesn't have to be."

"Oh?"

"Let me go." Hawk sat back on the couch. "This world's broken, I can't do anything for it. Not like you can, I'm guessing. So you can have it. We'll leave this world to your care and look for other worlds to help."

"And you really think you'd do better on those other worlds?" Robert shook his head. "I can't do that. Too many people have died. You're too dangerous. We can't let you go to cause more chaos. Especially if you have Darglan technology that can fall into the wrong hands."

"Your choice," Hawk stated. "Don't say I never warned you of what was coming "

"Your ship?", Julia asked.

There was a glint in Hawk's eye. "You'll find out soon enough."

 

 

 

Zack listened quietly while Apley relayed the results of his quiet investigation. "In summation, sir, I can find no indication that any member of this crew has been working with any party of the Colonial elections. All work has remained strictly personal or through the official channels with Admiral Adama."

_That's a relief._ The idea that his crew had actually betrayed the neutrality in Colonial politics that he had insisted on… he couldn't stand the idea.

"I'll let Admiral Adama know that's it's on his end for certain," Zack sighed.

"This can't effect our work, can it sir?", Apley asked. It was rhetorical given he continued. "Neither of the candidates want to split with us."

"No. But Roslin wants to do the smart thing and colonize another planet in another universe. Baltar's championing the 'do it now' approach. Just accept the world the Dorei have provided, even if it might not be optimal for Human settlement. And if they stay in this universe…"

"...the Cylons could still attack them." Apley shook his head. "I can't see why they'd be thinking in staying, then."

Zack shook his head and smirked. "Well, people get damn stubborn about even little things. Case in point… Had any economic arguments with Karen lately?"

Apley chuckled at that. He hailed from the Sol System Republic of D3R1, the unified Earth government of his home universe and an Alliance founding state. The SSR had a democratic socialist government and economic system that limited large-scale private enterprise in the name of putting people over the pursuit of profit. Lt. Karen Derbley, Zack's Chief Engineer, hailed from the Colonial Confederation of the same universe. Human colonists, proud of their 'Colonial' past who had formed their own government among the further settled planets after Humanity's diaspora into the wider galaxy of D3R1. They embraced libertarian politics and a laissez-faire economic system with the cultural approach of "if you want to eat, you'll need to work". And they too had joined the Alliance.

Zack was certain it made political debates on Alliance economics _interesting_ , to say the least, as their incompatible economic views and cultural perspectives had a tendency to leave Sol Republic and Colonial Confederation citizens at odds with each other. The fact that they could work together within the framework of the Alliance was held as a symbol of hope for the Alliance as a whole.

"I suppose everyone will be busy with goodbyes now," Zack mused. "Admiral Maran's made it clear we're leaving as soon as the Colonials begin their settlement."

Apley nodded. "I need to say goodbye to a few people, certainly. Captain Adama and I have been working on our boxing."

"So I heard."

"And what about you, sir? You'll be leaving Clara behind."

Zack sighed and nodded. "I know. I always knew that would happen."

"Is she staying?"

"Obviously. She signed a contract and everything, so many months of service. It's not up for another year at least. But I'm hoping to see her again before long. We'll still have leaves after all, and she gets so many weeks of break time. Including free transport. Maybe the next New Liberty Anniversary…"

There was a beep on his desk. Zack hit the key. "Magda?"

Lieutenant Magda Navaez, the Operations Officer, answered. " _Sir, Admiral Adama wanted you to know that Representative Zarek has called a press conference. In two hours._ "

"Running a little late in the evening, isn't he?"

"He is. But the Admiral thought you should know."

"Thank him for me." Zack looked back to Apley. "I suppose we'll all get to see what Baltar's up to now."

"A guy that smart… you never know what he'll pull."

"Yeah." Zack nodded. "You're dismissed, Ap. I've got some paperwork to catch up on."

"Aye, sir."

Apley left Zack to his thoughts. Baltar had no overt issues that made Zack suspicious - he was even more enthusiastic about the Alliance than Roslin in some ways - but he couldn't get over some innate suspicion he had of the man. _Where did it come from? Admiral Adama?_

He shook his head. Colonial politics weren't his place. He had other work to do.

 

 

 

Two images were showing on the monitors in the _Aurora_ Conference room off of the bridge. One showed an image of the brig cell where Hawk was sitting quietly. Occasionally a sliver of silver would emerge from his wrist and then shift back within his flesh through bruised skin.

On the other screen, Admiral Maran was looking at the feed and the data Leo had sent through. Leo was currently standing and delivering his report. "I wouldn't say he's inhuman now - not biologically speaking anyway - but he's clearly not a normal Human being anymore either."

" _What could drive a man to do something like that to his own body…_ " Maran's question was rhetorical. " _He admitted to the attacks?_ "

"We are sending the recording now," Julia said.

" _I'll have my people go over it. It will come in handy for the legal proceedings._ " Maran considered his next words carefully. " _I'm trying to get some relief arranged for that world. But with the war going on…_ "

"The Federation might consider assisting," Julia pointed out. "With everything that's happened, the Prime Directive doesn't really apply to them anymore."

" _I'll let the President know. He might be able to discuss the matter with President Jaresh-Inyo before he leaves Paris tomorrow._ "

" _In the meantime, is there anything else you can tell me about this individual?_ "

"I'm still studying some of the scans I took from our guest," Leo answered. "It might be a few hours before I have a comprehensive report ready on my findings. Analyzing the effect of the Darglan nanites in his body has taken priority."

" _Agreed. Keep me posted, Captain. Maran out._ "

Maran disappeared from the screen. "So what are we going to do now?', Caterina asked.

"He said he has a ship." Locarno nodded. "That's what we're waiting for."

"It is."

"A ship that might be brimming with Darglan technology," Caterina pointed out. "I'd love it if we could get ahold of her. Without having to blow people up."

"An unlikely outcome," Meridina noted.

"Meridina, please get back down to our 'guest'. The rest of you, back to stations. I want to know when our friend's buddies show up."

Everyone left the room.

 

 

 

Zack was on the bridge of the _Koenig_ watching as the press conference on _Cloud 9_ started. Zarek was well-dressed as always, in a gray suit and blue jacket with matching trousers. " _My fellow citizens of the Fleet, I come to address you about these reports of President Roslin's handling of the contact with the Alliance. It is with a heavy heart that I must confirm the authenticity of the claims._ "

"What is he up to…?", Zack muttered.

" _Roslin was dying, yes. And instead of doing the responsible thing and turning over authority to her constitutionally-mandated successor, she held onto that power. She intended to until she was dead, regardless of what effect it might cause us. And it nearly cost us everything. Because of Roslin we nearly lost the Alliance as friends. She order the seizure and arrest of four Alliance officers in an overreaction to a disagreement with them. She ordered the execution of an Alliance officer who came as a gesture of goodwill to end the crisis. Only the intervention of Doctor Baltar prevented the situation from creating a permanent rift between us._ "

The crowd now shouted in opposition or support for Zarek. He continued as if nothing was being said. " _It is important that the people of the Fleet know this so that they can make an informed decision on who should lead our people. We can't afford to have Roslin's flaws…_ "

Zarek's words were being drowned out now. The people present were clearly divided on the subject - some supporting Roslin, others opposing her, and both sides bitter by what was occurring.

And then Roslin appeared on the screen. She stepped up onto the platform and faced down Zarek. Billy stepped up beside her accompanied by her Marine bodyguards. " _Representative Zarek,_ " she remarked icily, " _I don't recall the Quorum agreeing to unseal this incident you refer to._ "

" _The People have a right to know…_ "

" _That's not what this is about and you know it!_ " Roslin held a hand out to the crowd. " _All you're doing is what you have always sought to do: turn us against each other. People like you thrive on division and conflict._ "

" _I resent the…_ "

The argument between the two was spreading to the crowd. " _If the voters want me to explain what happened in the first contact, then I'll do so, but I won't have you playing petty politics and…_ "

" _Everyone, please!_ "

Zack watched, with increasing interest, as Baltar stepped up onto the platform. He got between Roslin and Zarek with a hand toward each. " _This conflict is pointless_ ," he insisted. " _The errors that were made were rectified, we should not fight over them. We need to focus on the issues before the Fleet._ "

The quarreling in the crowd started to cease. Baltar immediately resumed his speaking. " _We're better than this_ ," he insisted. " _I know that we are. After everything we have suffered, we have come through intact. Whole. Our people are more unified now than they have been in decades. We are seeing beyond which Colony we hail from, we are seeing beyond any division of political or religious or social position we have previously endured. We cannot allow any argument to break that unity. Not when we need it._ "

A sour look briefly crossed Roslin's face. And as much as he was no politician, Zack was realizing what had just happened.

The entire scandal was a trap. And Roslin had walked right into it.

Baltar continued, looking to Zarek. " _Representative Zarek, I appreciate your passion, and your concern for the judgement of my opponent. But this isn't what I want my administration to be built upon, should the people pick me. I want an administration built upon mutual trust and respect. I want the people of the Colonies to be proud of us and our conduct. We must have unity, not division. We must respect each other. And together, we must rebuild our civilization and show the Alliance that we are worthy of the trust and protection they have granted us._ "

"Clever son of a bitch," Sherlily muttered from the tactical station.

Baltar held his hands up to the crowd. " _All I ask of you, people of the Colonies, is to remember this, regardless of whom you vote for tomorrow. United we are strong. United, we can rebuild what we have lost._ " And then, to finish it off, Baltar declared, " _So say we all!_ "

The crowd echoed him. Again and again and again.

And given the look on Roslin's face, Zack felt certain that she knew just what had happened.

"Turn it off," he said. Magda did so. "It's their election, not our's. Time to get back to work." He pressed down on his comm link. "Derbely, Barnes, I'd like an update on the drive, we'll be leaving soon and I'd like to know what to ask for when we get to…"

 

 

 

A short time later, Baltar arrived in his personal campaign suite on _Cloud 9_. As planned, Zarek was there. "You were a bit more energetic than I thought you intended to be."

"I had to be. Aren't you the one always talking about firing up the crowd?"

Zarek nodded in acceptance of that. "True. The important thing is that you have now defined yourself. You're our unifier. Roslin looks divisive. And with word of what she pulled at the first contact now out, I think we might pull this out. On another matter, what about a new world?"' Zarek looked out the window at the fields below. "Have any ideas?"

"The Dorei directed us to a lovely and uninhabited world about five light years from here, I think it's a good place to start." Baltar took out two glasses and held up a bottle. "This is a whiskey common to the other Earths. They call it a Jack Daniels whiskey. Would you like to try a drink with me?"

Zarek seemed to consider it before nodding. Baltar poured two glasses and handed one to Zarek. "To victory, Mister Vice President," Baltar said, holding up his glass.

"To victory," Zarek agreed. He clinked his glass against Baltar's. "Mister President."

Baltar considered how nice a ring to it that title had. It really was quite nice.

After they exchanged drinks, Zarek departed for his own suite. They wanted to be up bright and early in the morning for the election. The results would take time to tally and in the meantime they had to put on a good show to keep confidence up.

Baltar went into his bedroom. "Well done, Gaius," a sultry voice said.

"Thank you, my dear." He turned and faced the Cylon… angel… thing that had been in his head for months. "It wouldn't have been possible without you."

"All things are possible, Gaius, when you are on God's side," she cooed. "By this time tomorrow, you will be President of the Colonies. You'll keep your people here, in this universe, as God intends."

Baltar had his own reasons for wanting to stay in "N2S7", as the Alliance called it. But he went along with his head-voice's remark by nodding.

Tomorrow would tell. It would tell for all of them.

 

 

 

Robert was in his bridge office - "ready room", as it was called - doing paperwork when Julia entered. He looked up from his digital reader. She faced him with quiet patience written over her features. Her look was one of contemplation. "He's making you think, isn't' he?", she asked Robert.

"How easy could it have been for us to become like like Hawk?", Robert asked quietly. "All of that impatience, that frustration… if I had let it out like that..."

"We would have stopped you."

"Nobody stopped him."

"Maybe his friends are just as messed up in the head as he is."

"That's a frightening thought." Robert looked back out over the scarred world they were orbiting. Within him he felt his new… power, self, the well of life energy that the Gersallians called _swevyra_. It was odd to think that for a quarter-century of life, that power had been there. Slumbering, waiting for the day he would awaken it. It would have slept forever had things gone normally for them.

"You've got that look on your face," Julia noted. "Thinking about other things?"

He held out his hand. Very slowly, one of the digital pads on the table shifted and jerked. It began to move toward him slowly and not at all in a straight line.

"You don't think you'll learn this stuff quickly, do you?"

"Lucy's certainly learned a lot," Robert pointed out. "yanking guns away from gunmen even before she was formally trained."

"That makes you feel… what, inadequate?" Julia shook her head. "We all learn things differently."

"I know. I'm not…."

Their discussion was interrupted by a tone . " _Bridge to Captain Dale, Commander Andreys._ "

Julia got to the comm key on her multidevice first. "Yes, Jarod?"

" _We have a ship approaching at high warp. It doesn't match any signature in our records._ "

"Hawk's friends," Robert said. He tensed up. Whoever they were, if they were anything like him, they could be in for a fight.

"We're on our way, Jarod," Julia answered into her device. They went for the door.

 

 

 

Twenty decks down and half the ship's length away, Hawk remained patiently still in his cell. The security guards looking at him through the forcefield were keeping their attention between him and the sensor systems on their controls, sensors showing the status of the forcefield and his life signs.

That fit his intentions perfectly. He smiled thinly and focused his attention on the thin threads of nanites flowing out of the back of his neck and into the adjacent wall.

 

 

 

Robert and Julia got into their seats. ""How fast is the incoming ship?"

"As fast as us," Caterina noted. "Warp 9.94 is their current velocity."

Julia's eyes widened a little. "I'd be reluctant to go anything near that warp speed, short of an emergency."

"They must know we have him. Or that something's happened."

"They'll be entering visual sensor range in a few seconds," Caterina said.

"Jarod, as soon as you can, put them onscreen," Robert said.

"Right." he worked his board for a moment.

The screen flashed away from the broken Earth below to show a ship coming in at warp velocity. Everyone on the bridge stared at it in wonder and disbelief.

It was their ship. Or at least a twisted, dark reflection of it.

There was no brilliant azure sheen to the other ship's hull like on their own. The blue material was darker in coloring, starker in its tones. The Alliance marking stripes were obviously missing. And the ship was covered at several points with obvious weapon emplacements. The weapons it bore gave it none of the visual grace of the _Aurora_.

"Those weapon emplacements… can you guess what they are?", Julia asked.

Jarod and Cat were looking over the readings. They shared a concerned look before Jarod answered the question. "A number of them appear to be… pulse plasma cannons."

"A lot more than we have," Cat added.

"They're not all of uniform size. But they have at least twelve more emplacements the same size as our main battery," Jarod said. "Every arc is covered."

Robert took the news and drew in a breath. This was a nasty new foe to consider fighting. "Another Darglan Emergency Ship. Fully-completed. How many people are in this organization of Hawk's?"

"Open a hail to them," Robert ordered.

The holo-screen shifted to show another bridge, not entirely unlike their own. In the foreground was a woman with a light complexion and an East Asian look to her eyes. Her collar was dark blue and appeared to be from a jacket. Cold gray eyes glared at them. " _Where is he?_ ", the woman demanded. Her accent reminded Robert of the one his cousin had started to adopt after moving to Portland. Another Northwesterner, he guessed. " _Where is James?_ "

"If you're referring to Mister Hawk, he is in custody," Robert answered. "I'm Captain Robert Dale of the Alliance _Starship Aurora_ , representing the United Alliance of Systems. We've taken Mr. Hawk under arrest for the attack on this Earth."

"May we have your name?", Julia added.

The woman on the screen snarled in anger. " _I'm Helen, and our ship is the_ Avenger _,_ " she replied simply. " _And you have thirty seconds to give James back to us before I blast you to pieces._ "

"I'm afraid I must insist you be the ones to surrender," Robert answered. "It's clear your ship is responsible for the bombardment of Earth C1P2. I can promise you all fair trials…"

Even as he spoke, Robert knew it wouldn't end like this. He could sense the sheer passions in the crew facing them. They were almost disturbing in their familiarity. He remembered feeling the same once himself - liberation from state authority, being able to act entirely on your own guts, your own conscious, what you decided, what you felt, to be right or wrong. Nobody to tell you that it was against the law or a legal treaty to help people.

But there was something else about it. An aggression that he and his friends had never felt. A sense of the universe being a big nail that needed hammering into place with the biggest hammer at hand.

" _We're not scared of you_ ," the woman insisted. " _Give us back James. NOW._ "

"We won't be bullied," Robert replied., "Someone has to answer for the deaths on this Earth."

" _Worlds like this one are lost causes,_ ," the woman retorted. " _And your time is up._ "

"They're arming weapons," Jarod warned.

"Lock weapons Helm, begin evasive maneuvers."

Locarno moved the _Aurora_ as he first sapphire bolts lashed out at the ship. The ship shuddered as some of the shots made impact against their shields. "Shields down to ninety-two percent,." Jarod looked over the data they were getting. "It looks like their weapons are at least five percent more energy-efficient than our own."

"Firing!", Angela announced.

The _Aurora_ 's phaser arrays and cannons lashed out in retort against the enemy ship;. More sapphire bolts of varying size crossed their path and struck the _Aurora_ in the side.

"Shields down to eighty-three percent."

"Their shields look to be around ninety-three percent," Cat added.

Robert frowned. That wasn't good. In a stand-up battle they were clearly at a disadvantage. "Maintain evasive maneuvers. Try to get us some distance, Nick."

"On it."

"Jarod, whatever is happening, get us an uplink with Admiral Maran. We might need the help in taking this ship down, and either way we will need the analysis the fleet can give us on this ship's capabilities."

"They're coming after us." Locarno's hands were moving swiftly over his board. "It looks like they might be a little below our capability curve in acceleration and maneuverability."

"The extra mass from their heavier combat systems," Jarod proposed. "They don't have our performance capability at sublight."

Robert was thankful to hear that. It was an advantage they could use.

The ship shook again as another series of bolts hit home. Angel continued to vent their own phaser fire on the _Avenger_.

Save the _Avenger_ 's weapon emplacements being more visible, and the coloring of the two ships, they were similar enough in appearance that an observer could see it as siblings in a fight. _Aurora_ kept up her rapid maneuvering - for her size anyway - while the _Avenger_ poured sapphire fury against the _Aurora_ in a constant barrage. Occasional similar sapphire bolts, or amber energy, would retort against the _Avenger[_ 's shields.

 

 

 

The alert klaxon told Hawk that his time had come. Helen had brought the _Avenger_ back roughly on schedule. He amused himself with the thought of how surprising it must have been for Captain Dale and his fellows to see the _Avenger_ coming in, pulse cannons at the ready. _Helen will let me have it when I get back over there_ , he decided. _No more random thoughts. Focus._

The nanites had done their job. The cell had never been built to face someone who could use nanites to bore unobserved into the wall and get to the vital systems within. Now Hawk could sense the flow of data that helped control the cell's automated systems.  Sedative gas for unruly occupants, the forcefield controls, and monitoring systems for his lifesigns.

Unfortunately the system was isolated. He had hoped to get into the ship's computers and start messing things up. But that wasn't happening. So he would have to do this the hard way.

His mind formed a mental command. The nanites translated it into the appropriate code and transmitted it through the tendril of nanites now connecting him to the computers.

The forcefield shifted energy states. Visibly it was still on; in truth, it couldn't stop him if he pushed through it. This subterfuge bought him critical seconds before the security officers overseeing the brig realized what had happened. He retracted the nanites into his body again. A slight sting at the base of his spine marked the point they had come out and were going back in. He ignored it, just has he did the more painful stings of where his blades came from his arms.

As soon as the nanites retracted he got to his feet and charged forward. Every muscle in his body reacted with the swiftness demanded from the nanite enhancements. Pain filled him as he slammed into the forcefield. But it was not a difficult pain, nothing compared to the real pains he had known, and with the sabotage having weakened it the cell's field could not hold him.

The security officers were starting to react as Hawk emerged from his cell, a free man again. They reached for their firearms. But with his speed, the gesture was too slow, and far too late.

Hawk's fist struck the nose of one of the guards, breaking it with a crack. Blood sprayed from the nostril. He whirled in place and caught the other guard, a bird-like alien he'd not seen before, in the beak. He - or she, Hawk couldn't tell - keened in pain and went down.

The first guard was recovering from the broken nose. His hand was already on his pulse pistol. Hawk turned back to him and slammed the side of his hand into the man's throat. He began to choke in place and couldn't resist another follow-up blow to his stomach. One final slam of Hawk's knee to the guard's forehead put him down.

The avian alien started to stir. Hawk took the guard's gun and looked it over. It wasn't entirely like Darglan technology, but he had seen similar types of weapons. He found the power setting and configured it for non-lethal shots. One pulse to each of his foes ensured the fight was over. He pulled the multidevice off of the human guard's wrist and projected nanites out of his fingers and into the device. He couldn't access protected files easily, but all he needed was a schematic of the ship. A direction to go.

Within seconds he had it. Hawk rushed out of the brig and into the adjacent corridor. The ship shook under him as if to remind him of his limited remaining time. The _Avenger_ was engaging this ship, and Helen would be mad enough that she'd wreck it completely to get him back. And he would prefer not to be on a wrecked ship, if he could help it.

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Aurora crew return to the 1850s-era Earth they once interfered with and encounter a deadly new foe; Zack and his crew prepare to depart from the Refugee Fleet as the election between Roslin and Baltar comes to its final, surprising conclusion.

The other ship's weapons landed another direct hit, pushing Robert against his safety harness. "Damage?", he asked.  
  
As always, Jarod provided the status of their faltering shields. "Forty-five percent and holding."  
  
"Looks like we've got their shields down to fifty-two percent," Caterina added.  
  
"Still, this battle is too close, we need to do something to end it." Robert turned his attention back to the _Avenger_ and the holotank depicting their positions as they fought. There was something about the way the _Avenger_ was maneuvering that felt off. Was it something he could use for their advantage?  
  
"Look at the way they're maneuvering," Julia said. "And their firing pattern. Their tactics are basic."  
  
"Probably because they're like we were," Robert realized. "They know the basics, but they don't know how to use them. They're not trained or experienced in starship combat."  
  
"Then maybe we should show them how it's done."  
  
Julia was right. They had been reacting this whole time - their training and their experience gave them the better edge if they were the ones taking the initiative.  
  
"Let's see how much they want their friend back," Robert said. "Nick, break orbit, full impulse. Take us on a course toward the asteroid belt."  
  
"Aye sir."  
  
The _Aurora_ turned away from Earth and the _Avenger_ at high acceleration. As the range opened up the fire from the _Avenger_ became more and more inaccurate.  
  
"Bridge to launch deck. Commander Laurent, I want all fighters prepped for launch within five minutes," Julia commanded.  
  
" _Immediately, Commander_ ," Laurent replied.  
  
"It looks like they're biting," Jarod said. "They're now at full impulse and doing everything they can to catch up to us."  
  
"Are they?"  
  
"At the moment, they've managed to keep us from opening more distance."  
  
"Going by their power readings, I think they're trying to overpower their impulsor drives." Caterina turned at her station. "Okay, not trying. Definitely succeeding."  
  
"They're starting to gain on us."  
  
Robert and Julia exchanged confident looks. This was exactly what they had been hoping the _Avenger_ crew would do.  
  
"Just a little more time," he murmured.  
  
  
  
  
_Just a little more time…_ Hawk moved over to the next internal access tube, thinking _...just a little more time is what I need_. These crawlways and walkways were, going by the data he picked up, primarily used as systems access in parts of the ship where normal access was not possible. Spaces between decks, between major bulkheads, that sort of thing.  
  
But they also provided a way to move through the ship's decks with a reduced risk of detection.  
  
Ordinarily internal sensors would make this nigh-impossible. But Hawk's nanites had taken care of that. The sensor systems were Darglan like they were, and with his commands they knew how to shield him from detection.  
  
He finished climbing down one ladder and found himself on deck thirty-six. The secondary shuttle bay was nearby - his ticket off of this ship and back to his. It was time to leave the crawlspaces and get back into the proper area of the ship.  
  
He spotted the security detachment just in time. "Hands up!", one of them declared, all holding their rifles up.  
  
Hawk had been training for his next move. It was the hardest thing for him to do with the nanites in his body. Tendrils of silver emerged from each arm. At his mental command they surged forward and gripped the firearms in each guard's arms. In other circumstances Hawk could easily use the nanites to set the weapons to overload, getting rid of the problem easy enough, but he didn't like the thought of killing people who didn't have it coming in some way.  
  
So he'd do it the hard way.  
  
Or as Helen called it, the fun way.  
  
With a yank he pulled the rifles out of the hands of his surprised foes. The alien leader among them - the two stripes apparently meant she was a Lieutenant, from what he'd seen - immediately went for her sidearm. Hawk rushed forward and punched the teal-skinned being in the jaw. He felt the bone break under his blow. His foe flew backward into her team.  
  
Without a pause he turned and kicked out. Blood and teeth flew and a cry came from the Caucasian man who took Hawk's boot to his face.  
  
The other security personnel were recovering. But not fast enough. Not nearly fast enough. Hawk's nanite-enhanced strength broke teeth and bones as he put them down with merciless - if non-lethal - swiftness. He smirked. It was the first time he'd taken on enemies without resorting to his blades in a long while. But he didn't want to risk killing anyone.  
  
He heard the approaching runner. Superhumanly-fast as well… it was Meridina. He had to move.  
  
Hawk started sprinting toward the shuttle bay, knowing he was almost out of time.  
  
  
  
  
Kilometer by kilometer, the _Avenger_ caught up to the _Aurora_. Her weapons started lashing out at her twin with deadly fury. Sapphire bolts played over the faltering blue energies of the _Aurora_ 's deflector shields.  
  
On the _Aurora_ 's bridge, Robert could feel the tension in the others. He could feel the tension in his crew. The worry and rage from the other ship.  
  
He checked the distance. So did Julia.  
  
"Any moment…", she said, intent on the tactical view.  
  
He gave it another few seconds. And then a few more. And then…  
  
"Locarno, cut forward velocity, shift us to starboard! All power to port weapons! Launch all fighters!"  
  
The fighters of the _Aurora_ 's flight wing started to erupt out of the launch tubes along the top-most deck of the ship's drive hull. As the fighters emerged Locarno went to work. The ship jinked to the right, hard, and forward movement was quickly reduced with the drives.  
  
The _Avenger_ crew were slow to react. Too intent upon the kill, not knowing the specifics of the other ship's capabilities, they made a reaction to adjust.  
  
As they raced alongside the _Aurora_ , Angel let them have it. The port weapons on _Aurora_ 's side opened up with amber fury, slamming the other ship's shields with repeated fire.  
  
As this started to degrade _Avenger_ 's shields, Laurent and his fighters opened up with a barrage of solar torpedoes.  
  
At short range.  
  
The torpedoes started slamming into _Avenger_ 's overtaxed shields. Some hit the shields  
  
But after the few dozen or so, the shields on the _Avenger_ gave way to the onslaught. Explosions erupted along the primary and drive hulls of the colossal warship. As it passed by them, it was now bleeding atmosphere and debris from the dozen plus wounds the _Aurora_ had inflicted.  
  
But they were still fighting. They had also opened fire as they passed. More sapphire bolts slammed into the port shields of the _Aurora_ , making the ship shake from the resulting damage and stress.  
  
"Shields are now down to thirty-two percent." Jarod looked over his screens.  
  
At the engineering station, a male Gersallian ensign named Mataran added another report. "Primary Shield Generator 2 is offline. Activating secondary generators to compensate."  
  
"I'm picking up multiple hull breaches in the other ship. Their auto-repair systems are engaged, but I think we hit a few critical points." Caterina was looking over her sensor returns. "Their power signature is declining. And I'm picking up plasma leaking from their starboard nacelles. We may have disabled their warp drive."  
  
Julia added, "Laurent's people are going to continue hitting them."  
  
"Just what we needed." Robert leaned forward.  
  
As he did, he noticed a new feeling for the first time. It was faint. A sense of urgency and fear and anger… and he could sense Meridina, always prominent in his new senses, and her power, readying for action.  
  
"Hawk is free," he muttered.  
  
"What?" Julia looked at him.  
  
"Hawk is out," he said, more loudly this time. "Meridina's chasing him."  
  
"Then he won't be out for long," Julia predicted.  
  
  
  
  
The ship shuddered again as Hawk entered the secondary shuttle bay. Two security guards, both from the elven-eared species he'd seen, were waiting - a blue-skinned, teal-spotted man and a teal-skinned light-blue spotted woman. Hawk dodged their first shots with the benefit of his nanite-enhanced speed and returned fire with his stolen pulse pistol. The stun blast took out the man. The alien woman kept firing at him as he followed the wall toward a shuttle.  
  
Hawk whipped his arm out. As he did, a stinging sensation filled his wrist. A single blade erupted from the sore spot and flew through the air until it embedded itself in the alien woman's shoulder. Blue blood surged from the wound. A cry of surprise and pain came from her and her gun fell to the ground, released by the spasms of pain going down her now-useless arm.  
  
Before she could do anything else, Hawk shot her with a stun blast. She fell over, the nanite blade still sticking out of her shoulder.  
  
He went up to her. The uniform was more protective than he'd thought; his nanite blade would have gone completely through her shoulder if it had been regular fabric. He reached down and touched the blade with nanite tendrils coming from his sore wrist. The nanites in the blade flowed up, red from the blood seeping down his hand. He grimaced. That throwing blade trick always made the wound worst. He was still unable to keep it from cutting unprepared areas of his flesh the way he could with just a normal blade.  
  
Blue blood oozed from the wound. "Dammit", he muttered. Every moment he delayed, his escape became less likely. And it was already going to be a close shot.  
  
But he didn't see a point in this alien dying. She wasn't a slaver or a criminal or some other scumbag, she was just an officer doing a job. And he didn't kill people who didn't have it coming.  
  
...not usually, anyway.  
  
"Dammit dammit dammit," he continued, reaching to his sleeve and tearing the cuff off. Once he had a large enough piece of fabric he tied it over the shoulder as a tourniquet. The blood flow slowed to a bare oozing of blue.  
  
Good. He was done. Time to get….  
  
He heard a metallic sound behind him. And a voice called out, "Surrender."  
  
"Dammit," Hawk growled. He turned.  
  
Meridina was at the entrance to the shuttle bay. Her blade was in her hand in a ready position.  
  
"No good deed goes unpunished," he muttered.  
  
  
  
  
Lucy had left Mataran for the bridge watch so she could perform Tom Barnes' usual job of being Scotty's number two man in Engineering. He had sent her to look over Primary Shield Generator 5 on Deck 28, toward the rear of the ship, which was showing increased strain from the firepower of the enemy ship.  
  
That strain was eased by a few technical actions, energy re-alignments and the like, and Lucy was about to return to Main Engineering when she felt a terrible feeling in her… inner self, or life force aka _swevyra_ as Meridina would put it.  
  
She reached for the _lakesh_ hilt on her hip, joined to the tools she kept on her tool belt, and ran off. "Lucero to Scott, Generator 5 is fine. I've got to check up on Meridina!"  
  
" _Lass, this isnae th' time tae be runnin' off on…_ "  
  
"Trust me on this one, Scotty," Lucy pleaded. "She's going to need me." She got to one of the ladders on the deck and jumped on to climb further down. She didn't want to risk the lifts if something happened and power were lost.  
  
For a moment she wondered if the old engineer would force her to choose between what she felt was needed and the orders she'd been given. Finally a reply came. " _Alright, lass. Do what ye need tae do. I'll call ye if ye're needed._ "  
  
"I won't be long," Lucy promised.  
  
And as she climbed, she hoped she would get there in time.  
  
  
  
  
The _Aurora_ and _Avenger_ continued to hammer away at each other - the latter's superior firepower clashing with the superior maneuverability of the former, augmented by the skill of Nicholas Locarno and under the direction of the best maneuvers that Robert and Julia could devise.  
  
More sapphire bolts sprayed along the shields of the _Aurora_. "Shields are down to twenty-two percent," Jarod warned.  
  
"Primary generators are holding for the moment. Switching to secondaries, tertiaries on standby," Mataran added.  
  
"Shield effectiveness is creeping back up toward thirty…" Another hit. Jarod shook his head. "And we're right back to twenty-two."  
  
On the screen Angel's bow guns tore into their attacker as soon as Locarno maneuvered their bow toward the enemy. The _Aurora_ 's own large pulse cannons thundered their sapphire fury into the shields of the _Avenger_. Solar torpedoes followed the bolts in, accompanied by the flashes of amber energy from the _Aurora_ 's phaser emplacements. Explosions flowered along the _Avenger_ hull from these latter shots.  
  
"They're losing starboard shield cohesion," Caterina said. "I think you hit a power conduit, I'm detecting power loss in parts of their primary hull."  
  
The enemy's fury retorted. "Shields down to sixteen percent, damage on Decks 10, 12, and 14 through 20, multiple sections," Jarod said.  
  
"We'll need to bring this fight to an end soon," Julia remarked. "Unless we get reinforcements."  
  
Robert nodded in agreement. "So let's bring this to an end. Have Laurent's people break off for the moment and get distance."  
  
"And give them a clear shot on the enemy's weakened side?", Julia inquired. She was smiling - it was the same tactic she was about to suggest.  
  
"Exactly."  
  
"Sending orders now."  
  
"Maneuvering us into position," Locarno added.  
  
  
  
  
Lucy got to Deck 35 and started running. She summoned all of her power to move as quickly as she could. Every part of her being knew she was almost out of time.  
  
  
  
  
The secondary shuttle bay was quiet. Blood seeped from Hawk's wounded wrist as he generated nanite-forged blades for each hand. They formed with a sharp metallic sound not unlike that from Meridina's _lakesh_ when she activated the memory metal blade.  
  
"You can't win this," Meridina said calmly. "Please, no more violence."  
  
"Sorry, but I'm not interested in living out the rest of my life in a cell," Hawk answered.  
  
"I would rather not be forced to do this again…" She looked over at the wounded security personnel. "You are an interesting man. You have not permanently harmed or killed any of my subordinates in your escape. You lost valuable time stopping the bleeding in Ensign Truliri's shoulder. That seems incompatible with the viciousness I saw in your kills on the planet."  
  
"Your people are decent beings. They don't deserve to die. It's that simple."  
  
"But the house slave at Tara did?"  
  
Hawk frowned. "She got in the way. It wasn't… I didn't…" He frowned. "You're delaying me."  
  
"No. I simply wanted to understand you. It…"  
  
He had no more time. Hawk charged at Meridina, blades up.  
  
She didn't raise her _lakesh_. Instead Meridina put all of her will into a single mental act. _**SLEEP**_ , her voice boomed in Hawk's head.  
  
He fell over and collapsed.  
  
Meridina reached into her robe and pulled out wrist cuffs. She approached Hawk's sleeping form in a series of quick steps.  
  
As she got close to him, she felt apprehension and uncertainty. Fear. What was this from? Where could…  
  
She turned to the entrance of the shuttle bay and saw Lucy enter. Lucy had her _lakesh_ hilt in her hand. She stretched an arm out. "Meridina, _watch out!_ "  
  
Meridina felt the danger a second later.  
  
A second too late.  
  
  
  
  
Lucy screamed " _Meridina!_ " as Hawk's nanite blade plunged into Meridina's chest.  
  
The strength and sharpness of the blade, not to mention the enhanced strength of Hawk's arm, pushed the blade through even the _swevyra'se_ body armor Meridina was wearing. It rended flesh and rib and erupted from the other side. Thick red blood poured from both ends.  
  
Meridina looked in stunned silence at the blade connecting Hawk's right arm to her impaled torso.  
  
" _Bastard!_ " Lucy activated her _lakesh_ and charged at them.  
  
"Dammit, don't…!" Seeing Lucy was coming, Hawk had no choice. He pulled the blade out of Meridina and brought it up to parry Lucy's first swing. He had to twist to bring the other arm into position to parry the next blow. He stopped several more strikes in rapid succession and then had to pull back. The tip of Lucy's _lakesh_ drew a red line across his neck just below the chin. Had he been just an inch or two closer, his throat would have been opened.  
  
But as fast and powerful as Lucy was, she wasn't as good as Meridina yet. In her fear and anger she failed to sense the blow that came next. Hawk's foot snapped up and caught her in the belly. Lucy doubled over and fell to the floor of the shuttle bay.  
  
"You don't have time!", Hawk shouted at her. "I didn't know her anatomy, dammit… I got her lung!" He pointed to where Meridina was laid out on the shuttle bay floor. A crimson pool was flowing to either side of her. Blood bubbled in her mouth. "You need to get her medical attention."  
  
"So you can get away?!", Lucy shouted.  
  
"What's more important to you, lady?" Hawk nodded his head at Meridina. "Her life, or capturing me?"  
  
Lucy frowned at him. Because that question wasn't a question at all. And her answer was the obvious one.  
  
Lucy put her _lakesh_ away and went to Meridina's side. Her hand was already on her multidevice and activating the comm system. "Lucero to medbay, I've got a medical emergency in the secondary shuttle bay!"  
  
It was Leo who answered, " _What… Lucy? What's going…_ "  
  
"Meridina's been stabbed through the lung! She needs immediate medical attention!"  
  
" _I've got a team on the way._ "  
  
Lucy put her hand on Meridina's wound. Blood pushed through the gaps in her fingers. She could feel the lung filling with blood and worried that Leo's people wouldn't make it in time. She focused on the wound and the blood. Her power sensed it, settled on it, and she pulled. Blood flowed from the wound, staining Lucy's uniform and Meridina's robe as it spread across the deck.  
  
She heard engines power up. She didn't bother to look up and see Hawk take off in a shuttle. However he broke through the security access… that was for another time. She had to concentrate. She had to keep Meridina's lung clear of blood without letting her bleed to death. She sensed the cut blood vessels in Meridina's torso and forced the blood to follow them only. The concentration this took was taxing, more than anything she'd tried before with her power. Desperation and will fueled her focus; she couldn't afford to relent or Meridina would drown in her own blood.  
  
_Come on, Leo… hurry up…_  
  
  
  
  
Jarod's board informed him the moment the shuttle _Kane_ began to launch. "Unauthorized shuttle launch in the secondary bay," he told the others.  
  
The news broke Robert's concentration for the moment. The tactical maneuver was almost complete. The fighters were readying to swing around and hit the other side of the _Avenger_ from where they were firing. "What?"  
  
"Shuttle is lifting off… now."  
  
Julia frowned and hit a key. "Bridge to secondary shuttle bay, what's going on down there?"  
  
" _Meridina's hurt, I can't move or she could die!"_ , Lucy shouted through the comm link. " _He's getting away!_ "  
  
_Damn._ "Change of plans!", Robert shouted. "Angel, target that shuttle! Julia, if you…"  
  
"I'm re-directing the fighters," she said, already ahead of him.  
  
"Slippery son of a bitch," Angel cursed, and for good reason. Their prisoner was a capable pilot, evading all of her shots for the moment. She needed one, just one…  
  
The ship shook violently. "Shields down to six percent, cohesion loss imminent," Jarod said. "Mataran, the tertiary…"  
  
"I've got them online, but they can't maintain cohesion against the hits we're taking from those pulse cannons," Mataran protested.  
  
On the screen Robert watched the _Avenger_ change orientation and accelerate. The other ship threw itself into the flight line of the stolen shuttle. "Angel, everything!"  
  
Angel fired whatever she could. As fast as she could. Repeated amber bolts and beams moved across flickering blue shields as they tried to strike the shuttle. But the _Avenger_ had already extended shields. The two ships had been so close that Hawk had been able to pull into the protective range of his ship before Angel could hit him.  
  
Of course, that left the _Avenger_ herself. If they could cripple her… "Focus on her drives," Robert ordered. "If we can disable their main power…."  
  
"Gravitational spike," Caterina called out.  
  
"Jump point forming," Jarod added.  
  
A green jump point split open space ahead of the _Avenger_. The other ship accelerated at best speed into the maw of the tear in universes. Angel kept her fire up into the shields of the other ship, still trying to disable her.  
  
But the _Avenger_ 's shields held. The torpedoes and pulse plasma fire were thwarted before they could damage her any further, or destabilize her escape.  
  
The _Avenger_ accelerated into the jump point and disappeared into it. The vortex closed behind them.  
  
Robert growled in frustration. "Jarod, Cat, can you get their destination? Anything we can…"  
  
"The jump point wasn't open long enough for me to get any chance of figuring out where it goes," Caterina answered. "I'm sorry."  
  
Robert shook his head and smacked the arm of his chair. "Damn."  
  
"Stand down from Code Red," Julia said. "I'm recalling our fighters."  
  
"Send a message to Admiral Maran. Include all records of the battle." Robert leaned forward in his chair. A sick feeling came to him. He could feel Lucy's power clear across the ship, and Meridina…  
  
"God, no," he murmured. "Meridina!" He jumped from his chair. Julia looked at him with confusion as he went toward the lift. "I'm going down to see what happened to Meridina," he declared. "You have the bridge, Commander."  
  
"Yes, sir," Julia replied. She whispered her own silent hope and prayer that Meridina was okay. "Jarod," she began, "I'd like a damage report from all departments. Locarno, bring us back into Earth orbit, please. We still have some work ahead of us…"  
  
  
  
  
Robert got to the medbay just ahead of the stretcher carrying Meridina. Dr. Vijay Dasgupta, from New Bengal in L2M1, was the surgeon that had been closest to the secondary shuttle bay, and he was accompanying her in with his medics. Leo was waiting. "Stab wound to torso area, it entered the inner section of her right lung," he informed Leo. "Lieutenant Lucero kept the blood from filling her lung. It collapsed on the way here."  
  
"Alright. Let's get that fixed." Leo took control and pulled the stretcher toward the nearest medbay OR.  
  
Lucy stepped in next. Her worry and concern could be sensed even without Robert's recent training. It was clear in her body language, as was exhaustion. "He ran her through," Lucy said. There was an evident anger in her voice. "He almost killed her… I had to let him go or she would have... !"  
  
"You did the right thing," Robert assured her. He suspected others wouldn't agree. But losing Meridina was a price he was not willing to pay. Not for this.  
  
Lucy nodded and stepped toward him… and he barely acted in time to catch her in his arms. "Woh. Lucy?"  
  
"So tired… I had to concentrate to keep the blood out of her lung…" Lucy looked up at him with a weary expression. "Did we get him?"  
  
He shook his head. "Sorry. He and his ship escaped into an interuniversal jump point."  
  
Lucy grumbled under her breath.  
  
"You should probably get some rest," he advised her.  
  
"No. Have to wait to see how Meridina does…"  
  
"I'll…" He almost finished that sentence before catching himself. He had other duties at the moment. Maran had to be informed about the other ship, the " _Avenger_ ". Robert chose instead to bring her to a seat. "Here. Let me know when she gets out of surgery?"  
  
"O'course," she mumbled. It was clear that from her fatigue, Lucy was drifting off into sleep.  
  
Robert made sure she wouldn't slip off the chair and left her to rest. As weary as he felt, other work had to be achieved before he could rest.  
  
  
  
The _Starship Avenger_ drifted quietly in the vastness of interstellar space. The wounds from her battle with the _Aurora_ were still healing.  
  
In her main shuttle bay, the stolen shuttle from the _Aurora_ sat by itself. Hawk looked at it with an uncustomary quiet.  
  
Behind him, Helen was standing with her arms crossed. She was a tall woman, with a muscled figure that, with her height, made Hawk think of an Amazon from lore. She had crossed her arm and was frowning faintly. "We should have sent a stronger message to them to butt out," Helen growled. "If we'd left their precious little ship in a few more pieces, they'd take the hint."  
  
"It's not a big deal, Helen. It's a big Multiverse." Hawk smirked. "Besides, the goody-two-shoes and their kind could be useful to us. Eventually."  
  
"Get anything juicy from their computers, lover?", Helen asked him.  
  
Hawk smiled and brought up his personal display. Data in his systems appeared on a holo-screen above his right wrist. "How about a bunch of new universes for us to kick bad guy ass in?"  
  
"Oooh. Sexy." Helen chuckled. "Although it's going to be hard to get around with this 'Alliance' getting in our way."  
  
At that, Hawk let out a laugh. "Who says they're everywhere?"  
  
"What I want to know is what technology they have." The new voice was coming from under the stolen shuttle. Janice, who moved out from under it, was on the pudgy side of a solid build and wearing a work suit that didn't hide the curves or pudginess in her figure. She had colored her long hair bright pink and purple, much to Hawk's bemusement, since it went with the light bronze complexion of her skin.  
  
Blue and teal highlighted hair, brushed high, was the sign of her brother Kenneth. Ken had her height and build and complexion, although he had a bit of muscle on his arms compared to her. Ken was the engineer, Janice the technology wizard, and they were both unapologetic geeks of the highest order.  
  
Sometimes Hawk was astounded that he'd ever gotten them, his cousins, involved. He'd never been the "geek" type.  
  
"Their ship was crap compared to ours," Helen boasted. "We were kicking their asses."  
  
"Not quite," Ken pointed out. "We have better firepower, sure, but did you see the starfighters they were using? We still haven't built something that nimble. And their shields are a lot more robust than ours."  
  
"So let's hunt down one or two of their ships and get some samples of their shield tech," Janice proposed.  
  
"Assuming Andy doesn't over-do it like he did that Earth…", Ken began. He stopped when he noticed Hawk's dirty look.  
  
Helen snorted. "The people down there were all the backward superstitious type anyway. I say we make the Alliance think twice before…"  
  
"We're not attacking the Alliance," Hawk declared.  
  
"Oh?" Helen looked at him. "They didn't mind attacking you."  
  
"They're goody-two-shoes. They're naive that way, but they're still good guys." Hawk frowned. "And that's our guiding rule. We don't kill good guys. Don't hurt 'em either, unless they make us. So we're not going out picking fights with the Alliance."  
  
"They might not give us a choice," Helen pointed out. "Or are we going to wuss out over that too?"  
  
Hawk turned and glared at her. "If they screw with us, we hit back. But I don't like killing people who don't have it coming to them. And these people are good ones. So we only defend ourselves and we hold back as much as plausibly can. _Capische_?"  
  
"Yeah, fine." Helen rolled her eyes. "Just so long as you don't expect us to submit to them and their rules. I signed up to make scum pay, not to be an errand boy for rich jerks."  
  
"Wouldn't that be 'errand _girl_ '?", Janice pointed out. She turned away at the harsh glare that Helen shot her.  
  
"Won't happen that way. Don't worry."  
  
Helen nodded. "So, what do about Andy?"  
  
"Can him," Hawk declared. He was frowning. "Again, first rule. No harming good guys. He blew up millions of people in his little temper tantrum."  
  
"On a world like that, there are pretty damn few good guys," Helen insisted.  
  
"Maybe, but there are some, and Andy blew them away too. I want that asshole as far from the tactical station as we can get him." Hawk started walking away. "I'm going to take a rest. When we get back, we need to start loading tactical education into the infusers. It should give us more of an edge if we ever run into the _Aurora_ again."  
  
"I was already going in for another infusion," Helen admitted.  
  
"So was I," Janice added. "We need to know more about subspace to improve our…"  
  
"Just make sure the tactical data is mixed in. We'll take turns as always. See you in the morning."  
  
Hawk left them behind and headed to his quarters on deck 4. He peeled off his combat suit and threw it to the side. Another headache was coming in. So many headaches these days. They only seemed to relent when he was taking out scumbags.  
  
He laid down on his bed and felt the pull of sleep. But he also thought of that woman. Meridina. She had shown no malice, no fear, not anything like he was used to when fighting.  
  
And he thought of his blade in her chest, the blood pumping into her lungs, the stunned surprise on her face.  
  
He hadn't intended to hit her in the lung. He'd never… she didn't deserve to die. He was certain of that. He was just trying to wound her enough to get away. She was too skilled for anything but the most unexpected attack to work. It was why he'd adjusted his nanites to artificially awaken him from any sleep state. Her attempt to compel him to sleep had only lasted a few seconds because of that. He'd wound her and then get away and…  
  
_You almost killed her. And she didn't need killing._  
  
But the worst thing about it was… that sense of elation he had still felt. He'd bested this dangerous adversary and it made him feel strong, invincible. Even though he didn't want to hurt her, it felt good… _Yeah, that's what happens. You mess with the bull, you get the damn horns.  
  
I'm overthinking it._ He turned over in his bed and tried to relax until he could go to sleep. The headache still stung behind his eyes. His mind began to wander.  
  
_I wonder how the goody two-shoes types are handling this…?_


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Aurora crew return to the 1850s-era Earth they once interfered with and encounter a deadly new foe; Zack and his crew prepare to depart from the Refugee Fleet as the election between Roslin and Baltar comes to its final, surprising conclusion.

The _Aurora_ command crew assembled the next morning for another call from Admiral Maran. " _I have examined the logs of your battle_ ," Maran stated. Outside the window the Earth of Universe C1P2 was again visible - they had assumed an equatorial orbit to resume medical assistance operations to a planet sorely in need of far more. " _Our tactical assessment of the_ Avenger _and her combat capabilities is that she is an advanced battlecruiser. That you lasted so long against them is to be commended._."  
  
"I think our real edge was training," Julia stated. "They didn't have the best grasp of tactics. They're not used to fighting other starships capable of fighting back."  
  
"Unfortunately, that's something they'll fix with time," Robert noted. "We may not have that advantage next time."  
  
" _The fact that they are remaining stateless might work to our advantage. Whatever the case, the fleet will be ready for them if they ever show up again. Now, what about casualties?_ "  
  
"Injuries to the crew, for the most part" Julia replied. "Hawk didn't kill anyone during his escape. Although he almost killed Meridina."  
  
Maran took immediate note of that. " _How is the Commander?_ "  
  
"She suffered a stab through the lung," Leo answered. "It could have killed her. Lieutenant Lucero was able to keep the blood from flooding into her left lung enough to cause any damage from prolonged oxygen loss, thankfully. She should be clear for duty in a couple of weeks. Three, at the most."  
  
" _That is good to hear._ "  
  
Leo remained standing. "I've been going over my scans of Hawk. And I've found something I'd like to share."  
  
Maran wasn't the only one to show interest. Robert leaned forward in his chair. "Go on."  
  
Leo reached for his multidevice and tapped in commands. He interfaced with the display systems for the conference room holo-table. A holographic image of a generic male figure popped up. Beside it was Hawk. "I've already gone over the nanite enhancements," he began. "But this is something I noticed this morning."  
  
Another button tap zoomed in on both figures. Specifically, on their heads, and then even closer, to their skull and the brain within. Multiple angles of the brain were shown around the figure. Colored areas showed.  
  
It was immediately clear that Hawk's were colored differently.  
  
"This is a normal Human brain. And this is Hawk's." He indicated the two. "The differences in electrical flow in the neurons, the activity in specific areas of the brain, it's all there."  
  
" _Doctor, are you saying this Hawk individual is brain-damaged?_ "  
  
"I thought so at first. It would explain his shifts in personality. Why someone so brutal as to slaughter people planetside without a sign of remorse would express regret later, or stabbing Meridina in the lung instead of going for a fatal blow." Leo tapped his multidevice. "And then I had an idea of where I had last seen this brain pattern."  
  
Another brain popped up on the other side of the sample. It had a pattern closer to Hawk's than the normal brain. "Should we know this one?", Cat asked.  
  
"I'd hope so," Leo replied. "It's yours, from years ago. After your last infusion."  
  
"Woh." She frowned. "So… I'm brain-damaged too?"  
  
"No. But you might have suffered some effects from this if someone hadn't stopped you from having too many." He smirked. "Mostly me."  
  
Cat quickly put two and two together. "The brainwave infusers."  
  
" _Doctor?_ "  
  
"The brainwave infusion technology the Darglan made," Leo said. "Control warned us to not use it frequently. I think this is why."  
  
"You think Hawk overused it," Jarod said. "And that it altered the structure of his brain."  
  
"Exactly." Leo nodded. "I think Hawk, and anyone with him, have been abusing the infusers. They don't give their brains time to acclimate to the uploaded data. They upload again too soon. And so they're destroying their brains, one upload at a time."  
  
"Could this…. kill them?"  
  
At that Leo shrugged. "That would be conjecture without data at the moment. All I can tell you is that it's going to have an effect upon their mental condition. They may start to have issues with emotional control, or showing any emotion. Or maybe they'll end up in constant pain. The brain is a complex organ and there's no telling what symptoms overuse of the infusions may cause. I'd need access to them, or their medical records."  
  
"I don't think that'll be possible," Angel pointed out.  
  
" _It is something to consider should we ever get access to the technology again_ ," Maran pointed out. " _Thank you, Doctor Gillam, for your input._ " The admiral's expression shifted. " _The war has caused numerous humanitarian crises to arise in S4W8. The majority of our hospital ships are tied up dealing with those. I can only assign two ships, the Galen and the Clara Barton, to C1P2._ "  
  
"What about Starfleet?"  
  
" _They have other obligations. And some recent difficulties with the Klingons have proven distracting._ "  
  
"That doesn't sound good," Julia observed. "What's going on with the Klingons?"  
  
" _There's a Klingon fleet at DS9 that has everyone on edge. They're not elaborating on why they've got a fleet there when it could be at the front in S4W8. Naval Intelligence is working on it, obviously, but they have bigger concerns in S4W8 with the Reich's counter-offensive in the Argolis Sector._ "  
  
"Understood, Admiral. We can remain and…"  
  
" _No. The_ Aurora _is needed elsewhere. I'll have orders for you this afternoon._ "  
  
"But…" Robert swallowed. "This planet, this Earth… it's going to need help. Rebuilding. And two hospital ships can't do that alone."  
  
" _Even with you, they couldn't. I'm sorry, Captain, but with the war as a priority, we don't have the resources to rebuild a planet out of charity._ " Maran frowned. " _I'm afraid Earth C1P2 will be on its own for a while._ "  
  
The Admiral's argument was a harsh one. But completely true. The war with the Nazi Reich was of paramount importance for the moment, and all considerations would be seconded to it.  
  
"Understood, sir," was all Robert could give by way of reply.  
  
" _I'll transmit new orders to you soon. Maran out._ "  
  
"So that's it," Leo mumbled after Maran disappeared. "There's nothing more we can do."  
  
"He's right." Jarod shook his head. "We can't heal an entire planet by ourselves. Let's worry about the things we can change."  
  
"Just because he's right dinnae mean it feels right, lad." Scott was shaking his head.  
  
"We'll do what we can before we leave." Robert looked to Leo. "Leo, ready our patients from C1P2 for transfer to the _Barton_ when she arrives. And have your people take what they can from your medicine lockers to help planetside medical authorities with medical emergencies. Jarod, Scotty, see what help we can provide from available replicator stocks, and see that it's beamed down before we depart. Angel, I want you to coordinate with Commander Kane. See if there's any way to help planet-side security forces restore order in ruined cities. We can provide that data to the other ships to use as needed. Everyone else, you are dismissed."  
  
The meeting adjourned.  
  
  
  
  
Election day had come to the Colonial Fleet. On every ship in the fleet, the sixty thousand or so citizens of the colonies were casting their votes for their Quorum representatives and for the Presidency of the Colonies.  
  
Zack and his crew had no place in this vote, of course. With nothing else of interest going on today, they were remaining on the _Koenig_. Only some of the volunteer doctors and nurses from the Alliance were staying on Colonial ships for the election, continuing their jobs as normal.  
  
With the day open, Zack was taking the time to do paperwork and hang out with Tom Barnes. The lanky redhead was letting his Alliance uniform go a bit rumbled, as was usual for him, while he reclined in the chair in Zack's office tinkering with a digital reader. "So it's over, eh?", he remarked.  
  
"Hrm?"  
  
"Our little excursion," he clarified. "Getting away from Rob and the others, spreading our wings, that sort of thing."  
  
"Oh. Yeah, it is," Zack said. "By this time tomorrow we'll be meeting with the _Aurora_. Things will go back to 'normal'... if that's what you call all this."  
  
"Well, it sort of is normal now, isn't it?", Barnes pointed out. "I mean, sure, four years ago normal was your beat up old car and hunting for jobs in the social wastelands of Kansas. Now we fly spaceships for a living." Barnes chuckled. "Dude, I'll take the new normal any day of the week."  
  
Zack smirked at that. "Yeah. It's certainly a better normal."  
  
Barnes leaned backward over the arm of the chair and looked at Zack with his head upside down. "Of course, that was before Clara Davis wrapped you around her finger."  
  
Zack took his stencil and scribbled his signature on a commendation order for one of his crew. "It's good to see Magda and Chief Pacetti agreeing on Crewwoman Darina's Commended Service Medal. She's doing well on managing Deck 2's damage control crew."  
  
"Darina? Oh, that cute Gersallian redhead? A little overeager sometimes if you ask me…" Barnes tapped his table. "And don't change the subject. You and Clara."  
  
"What about me and Clara?", Zack asked. His reader brought up another order. A promotion for Crewman Jagana.  
  
"You are being intolerably coy about that," Barnes grumbled.  
  
"It's private."  
  
"You used to brag about how often you and your girlfriend of the week got to…"  
  
"Tom, if you finish that sentence, I will seriously kick your ass," Zack warned. "That was the past. And it's not about that."  
  
Barnes gave him a skeptical look. "So this isn't about the fact that Clara fills out her uniform? Maybe a bit on the pudgy side of things…"  
  
Zack sighed loudly and put his reader down. Quite loudly. "What is it that you want, Tom? Yes, I'm enjoying my relationship with Clara. Yes, we have sex, and the sex is about the best I've had in my life. No, I'm not sharing details, because it's not any of your business. This isn't high school and bragging about sexual exploits. We're in the adult world now. We do adult things. Like fly starships between stars and risk our lives in fights with Nazis."  
  
Barnes' look became quite annoyed. "The way you say that, it's like you think I'm not a mature adult myself."  
  
"The accusation has occasionally crossed my mind."  
  
"I'm just looking to have some fun, man. For us to have fun, hang out and be buddies like we used to." Barnes tossed his own reader to the desk. "Because lately all it seems you care about is 'duty' this or 'Clara' that. Dude, I came out here to keep you company, and you've spent months acting like I'm just around."  
  
There was silence in the office. "Alright, I'm sorry for getting on your case," Zack apologized. "I know you asked for the transfer to _Koenig_ because you were worried about me after everything that happened. I appreciate it, Tom, really, I do. I just…"  
  
He stopped. How could he describe this to Tom? That things had simply changed? He wasn't the same guy anymore. He still wanted to be friends, to hang out occasionally and provide advice and all the kinds of things they'd always done together. But they weren't going back to that old partying, "bros" behavior. Their world had changed too much.  
  
Barnes was letting the silence linger for his own reasons. "It's cool that you're with Clara, alright?", he said. "She's sweet and cool and you two are crazy for each other, and that's awesome. But I'm tired of feeling like you're slipping away. From all of us, man. You and Rob, then you and Julia, and now it's to you and me…" Barnes put a hand to his chin, resting it with his arm on the chair. "It's like… I dunno, it's just like we're all starting to pull apart. And I don't want that. We're cool together. The eight, well, more than eight of us."  
  
"We'll always have those memories of our times together," Zack said. "Baseball games and parties. That time Angel and Julia beat up those bikers down at the old Hound…"  
  
Barnes chuckled. "Yeah. And we all ended up in the sheriff's drunk tank."  
  
"...and Rob's dad came to bail him out and started laughing when he saw all of us together. Even Cat was there!"  
  
"She _did_ smash a pitcher into the head of that big guy going at Angel's back…"  
  
Their mutual reminiscing stopped. "Those days aren't coming back," Zack sighed wistfully, "but we've found something out here that keeps us together. Just differently. So…"  
  
There was a tone from his desk that interrupted them. Zack pressed the receive key. "Carrey here."  
  
Magda spoke on the other end. " _We just got official word, Commander. The election results are in._ "  
  
  
  
Barely an hour later, Zack was back on _Cloud 9_. Celebrations were still going on. He wasn't here to celebrate, of course, simply to do his duty. A bubbly, happy intern directed him to where his subject was chatting away with supporters. He was recognized approaching and made sure to show full politeness. "Congratulations on your victory," Zack said. He extended his hand.  
  
It was taken immediately. "Thank you, Commander," Dr. Gaius Baltar replied. He gave Zack a moment's handshake.  
  
"It's a pleasure to see you Commander." Tom Zarek stepped up as well. He offered his hand and Zack accepted it immediately. "You and your crew have been welcome additions to the Fleet. Had it been my way, they would have been given the vote as well."  
  
"Thank you for that, Mister Vice President," Zack said. "Although I think Admiral Maran would have ordered us to abstain regardless. It's important that your internal politics remain uninfluenced by the Alliance."  
  
Baltar nodded. "We thank you for that consideration. I hear you'll be leaving us now?"  
  
"My orders were to withdraw from the Fleet once we had your decision on where to settle. Other Alliance ships will work with you on colonization." Zack smiled slightly. "As much as my crew and I have enjoyed working with your people, the _Aurora_ is in need of a support ship again, and the _Koenig_ will be returning to that role."  
  
"Of course. I understand completely. You may inform Admiral Maran that we will be accepting the Dorei offer for the planet Peltago. We intend to name the world New Caprica."  
  
Zack pondered that. Capricans were represented pretty well in the fleet, certainly… but the other eleven Colonies had populations that might be more ambivalent. "I would have imagined you'd pick something more neutral. New Kobol, for instance?"  
  
"Oh, no. That would be blasphemy, my dear Commander," Baltar insisted. "And while my esteemed Vice President is awaiting the day that New Sagittaron is announced, the fact remains that Caprica was the cultural and social heart of the Colonies. Naming our first new colony after that world is something both Roslin and I had in mind."  
  
"And you're going to stay in N2S7?" Zack was very curious about that choice. "There are plenty of other worlds, in other universes where the Cylons can't get to you."  
  
"The Cylons have made it clear they can't face the Alliance," Zarek pointed out. "They'll pose no problems for us no matter where we settle."  
  
"And New Caprica is well within the Dorei frontier," Baltar added. "From what I've seen of them, the Dorei will not suffer a Cylon incursion very kindly."  
  
"No. No they won't." _All the same… this is taking a risk you don't need to. What is your game here, Baltar?_ Zack made a show of checking the time on his multidevice. "Well, I'm afraid I must be going. I have to see Admiral Adama and make final preparations for our departure."  
  
"I understand, Commander." Baltar was still smiling. "Please, whenever you get a chance, I do hope you return to New Caprica. Under my leadership, it will be a beautiful settlement. I have many plans for its layout. And I'll be certain to include your baseball fields in the parks."  
  
Zack's response was a small smile. He nodded again to the winners of the election and departed.  
  
  
  
Later that day, Zack was in Adama's office with a digital reader extended. "My final report to you, Admiral," he said.  
  
Adama took it and gave it a quick glance. "Very well, Commander." He took his stencil and signed his name at the bottom. "I must say, your digital reader pads make the paperwork side of my job very convenient. One of the little benefits of our contact."  
  
"I've found paperwork is paperwork, sir."  
  
That caused a chuckle. "Yes." For a moment he said nothing more.  
  
And then Adama extended his hand. "It's been a pleasure serving with you, Commander Carrey." Zack took his hand at this point for a handshake. "You and your crew are always welcome here with the Fleet."  
  
"Thank you, Admiral Adama. It's been a pleasure on my end as well."  
  
"Please, give my best to Captain Dale and the others." The handshake ended. "I look forward to hearing from you again some time."  
  
Zack replied with a nod. A question on his mind now came to the forefront. "With the colony location selected and Baltar elected, what will happen to the _Galactica_ and _Pegasus_ now?"  
  
"We'll have to see," Adama admitted. "I'm going to propose we see about further refits. Just to make sure we have an edge if the Cylons attack or we have other problems. It all depends on what Baltar and Zarek choose to bring before the Quorum."  
  
"Hopefully everything will work out. WIth the war with the Nazis still on, the Alliance is going to be sending a lot of ships into S4W8 for a while." Zack stopped there. The next question, which he would leave unasked, was about the data from the Darglan Facility that had been uploaded to the _Galactica_ and _Pegasus_. It would be a while, presumably, before the Colonies could do anything with it. But it was a useful chip for them to cash in with the Alliance at some point.  
  
"Are you transporting back to the _Koenig_?", Adama asked.  
  
"After I make one more stop," Zack answered.  
  
Adama didn't need to ask just who the stop was for. He smiled and nodded at Zack before he left.  
  
  
  
  
Zack found Clara in the _Galactica_ galley, having lunch with some of the other nurses and crew. One of the mechanics, Cally, was enthusiastically inquiring about dental schools in the Alliance while the others teased playfully about such a career choice.  
  
Zack was surprised to see Kara walk by. She gave Zack a knowing look and winked at him. "Take care, Loverboy," she said with a grin, offering her hand. He accepted it. "Keep those flying skills sharp."  
  
"It's a shame," he replied. "We never did get to put you in the cockpit of a Mongoose."  
  
"Oh, I'm sure I'll get to fly one eventually," was her reply. "I'll leave you to your lady and master now, Carrey. Try not to cry too much."  
  
That brought a chuckle from Zack. He went on to the table, where Clara was standing up upon seeing him. She excused herself from the others and walked up to him. They embraced. "It's time, then?", she asked.  
  
"It is," he replied gently.  
  
He could hear the sadness in her voice. And he felt it within himself. These past several months had been the happiest in his life, it seemed, and Clara had been the reason why. After being alone so long…  
  
"I have a scheduled vacation period coming up," Clara said. "Maybe we can meet?"  
  
"If things hold out, we'll be there for the fourth anniversary of New Liberty. We can enjoy the festival together."  
  
"I'll look forward to that."  
  
For a moment, neither said anything. They just looked into each other's eyes, afraid to end the moment, knowing it wouldn't happen again for many weeks to come. They didn't notice the number of eyes starting to turn their way.  
  
"Are you…?", Clara asked, seeming confused.  
  
"What? Oh. Right."  
  
Zack leaned his head in and pressed his lips to Clara's. They began to share a deep, affectionate goodbye kiss.  
  
Neither seemed to be bothered by the whistles and applause that broke out. The kiss, for both, was far more important.  
  
  
  
  
Baltar had spent the prior evening and much of the day dealing with the matters of assuming the Presidency of the Colonies. Soon he would give the oath of office and move his things to _Colonial One_ , allowing him to oversee the colonization plans.  
  
Now, for the first time in a day, he was alone. Briefly, but just long enough for…  
  
"Congratulations, Gaius."  
  
He turned away from his desk to face the beautiful blonde. She was in a slinky red dress, trying to provoke him with sexual attraction as she often did. Whether she was some Cylon plant in his brain or a form of extradimensional entity - Alliance records linked to other universes had confirmed the possibility of such beings, at least - Baltar did not know. He just knew she could be dangerous, and yet, that she was trying to help him.  
  
Help him do what and for what… that was something he was still trying to figure out.  
  
"I am now President of the Colonies, yes," he said. "Thank you, my dear. Now the question is… where do we go from here?"  
  
"Where indeed?"  
  
"Why did you insist on colonizing a world in this universe?", Baltar asked. "Is this another one of those 'God's Plan' things?"  
  
"You are correct," she replied. She was so close he could swear he could smell her body. The thought of experiencing sensual ecstasy with her again rushed blood through his body. He knew she was doing this on purpose. To excite and tease. He couldn't help but enjoy it. "The place of your people is in this universe, not another. God's plan for you has yet to be fulfilled."  
  
"And what plan is that? Let the Cylons finish their genocide?"  
  
"Obviously not, or God would have let them destroy you long ago," she chided him. "The Plan is bigger than that. Greater. You'll see that, Gaius dear. It will be a while, but you'll see it."  
  
And then she was gone, and Baltar was left to his thoughts.  
  
  
  
**Tag**  
  
Lucy pulled up a chair in the medbay beside Meridina's bed. She was still asleep.  
  
"She needs the rest." Leo stepped up beside Lucy. He pulled a hypospray from his lab coat and pressed it to Meridina's neck. "Just giving her another medication. The Gersallians' cardiovascular system can suffer chemical imbalance when the body's trying to produce more blood."  
  
Lucy nodded. "Okay."  
  
Leo put a hand on her shoulder. "Are you alright?"  
  
"If I had just been there a moment sooner, maybe…"  
  
"She's okay, Lucy. She'll be okay. It's not your fault." Leo smiled confidently at her. "So, are you coming?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Cat just called from the bridge," Leo revealed. "She has the _Koenig_ on long-range sensors. They'll be docking in an hour. Julia's getting everyone together to welcome them back at the airlock."  
  
"Oh. I…" Lucy looked back to Meridina. "Maybe I should stay. So Meridina's not alone."  
  
Leo considered that response. "I think she'll understand if you go to welcome them back, Lucy. She'd want you to."  
  
It wasn't clear that was good enough of a reason for Lucy. She reached over and held Meridina's hand for a moment. It pained her to see her teacher, the one showing her all of the things this power within her could do, stricken like this.  
  
Finally she breathed in a sigh. "Okay." She smiled gently. "Alright, I'll be there."  
  
  
  
Everyone watched with grins and smiles wide as the _Koenig_ slid gently into her docking space for the first time in over half a year. Robert looked to Julia and said, "It's about time, isn't it?"  
  
"Yes, it is," she replied. "And maybe now Zack will feel better about… things."  
  
He nodded at that. For everything that had happened since, there were still times he thought of how he had messed up back in the 33LA mission the prior May. And how that had so badly affected his friendship with Zack. "I want to regain his trust," Robert admitted to her. "He had good reason to be angry with me."  
  
Julia said nothing in reply. They had discussed this before, after all.  
  
The airlock finally opened. Zack and Tom stepped out and the assembled _Aurora_ officers cheered. "Welcome home!", they called out together.  
  
Scotty was quick to add his own greeting. "Good t' see ye, lads!"  
  
Jarod was next. "You're finally back where you belong!"  
  
"Someone finally beat Jarod at poker," Locarno declared. "I've got the holovid for you!"  
  
At the tremendous response, Zack sighed and laughed. Barnes gave everyone a grin. "So, Scotty, you kept them from blowing the ship up after all," he said. "How'd you do it without me?"  
  
"Wasn't easy, lad. Was nae easy at all."  
  
Robert stepped ahead of the others and offered his hand. "Welcome back, Zack."  
  
"Aren't we supposed to do some formal ceremony?", Zack asked. He accepted Robert's hand. "Like, reading of orders and signing and countersigning or something?"  
  
"The paperwork can wait, Zack. I'm just glad you're home."  
  
For a moment, they had just the handshake. And then, by mutual decision, they turned it into an embrace. Robert patted his best friend on the back. "It's good to have you back, Zack. I've missed you."  
  
"I've missed you too, Rob," Zack admitted. "And forget about what happened last year. This is 2642. Time for a fresh start."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
Their hug ended and Zack moved on to embrace Julia. As they exchanged greetings, Robert shook hands and exchanged shoulder pats with Barnes to welcome him back. Apley came next, and…  
  
...and just for a moment, Robert thought he heard something else. Something different. Something out of place. A faint howl in the air, one he couldn't recognize.  
  
Magda stepped up to him. "It's good to be back again," she said. "The Colonials were nice, but I missed having holodecks or Hargert's cooking."  
  
"We'd all miss Hargert's cooking," Robert replied. By the time the exchange was over, the howl in his head had vanished.  
  
What had that been anyway? A figment of his imagination?  
  
Whatever it was, it wasn't important. Not as important as this reunion. "Hargert's got a welcome home meal ready and waiting in the Lookout," he declared loudly. "For the entire _Koenig_ crew."  
  
That prompted cheers.  
  
Robert let himself smile. After the past few months and the craziness they'd gone through… it seemed things had finally gotten back on track.  
  
And then there was a chirp on his multidevice. It didn't interrupt the festivities, but it did get his attention. He pressed the key. "Dale here."  
  
" _Jupap, sir._ " Jarod's Alakin backup was currently in command of the bridge. " _We just received a Priority One alert from Defense Command._ "  
  
_A Priority One? Is this about that Nazi counter-offensive…?_ "What's it about, Lieutenant? Something, in S4W8?"  
  
" _No sir. Not S4W8. S5T3._ "  
  
That made Robert blink. "What? What's going on over there?"  
  
" _It is the Klingons, sir_ ," was the answer.  
  
By this point, everyone was starting to turn and listen in.  
  
"What about the Klingons?"  
  
" _The Klingon Empire has invaded Cardassian space_ ," Jupap reported. " _And they've withdrawn from the Khitomer Accords._ "  
  
Julia's jaw dropped for a moment. "But… that means…"  
  
"It means the Federation and the Klingon Empire are no longer allies," Robert said. "And the war with the Nazis just got a hell of a lot harder."


End file.
